Doctor Grace Trevelyan Grey meets Anastasia Steele
by ChristianGrey50shades
Summary: As the mother of Seattle's most eligible bachelor, Doctor Grace Trevelyan-Grey fills us in about her son and her future daughter in law. Check out my blog for 'Meet Fifty Shades Continued' - rated too explicit for this site. Find the link on my profile page.
1. Chapter 1 The Worried Brother

**Doctor Grace Trevelyan Grey meets Anastasia Steele**

_**A/N – IF YOU ARE WONDERING WHERE MY STORY 'MEET FIFTY SHADES CONTINUED' HAS GONE, IT WAS TAKEN DOWN BY THE ADMINISTRATORS OF FF FOR BEING TOO EXPLICIT. IF YOU STILL WANT TO READ IT AND FOLLOW NEW CHAPTERS, I HAVE SET UP A BLOG .DETAILS ARE ON MY FF PROFILE PAGE ALONG WITH MY EMAIL ADDRESS IF YOU WANT TO CONTACT ME ABOUT IT.**_

**Chapter 1 - The Worried Brother**

"So do you think he might be sinking into a depressive state?" I asked Elliot, worried by what he'd been telling me about Christian.

"Well I couldn't say for sure, Mom. You know Christian, he never really opens up does he? All I know is that when we went hiking today, he wouldn't talk about himself at all. I tried to get him to come out for a drink afterwards to unwind, but as usual he said he was too busy. He just seems…preoccupied somehow. "

"Maybe I should call him…" I pondered.

"He'll tell you he's fine Mom. It's only when you actually see him, you know?"

"Hmm, yes, I know what you mean. I haven't seen him for nearly two weeks now… maybe I should drop by unannounced so that he can't fob me off."

"Well, that might not be such a bad idea. Then you can assess him properly. He won't bite your head off the way he does mine either. I do happen to know he'll still be around tomorrow morning."

"Yes, well I could drop by Escala then, and insist on taking him out to lunch."

"That would be great, Mom. I'd feel a lot happier if I knew you'd checked up on him. But I should go over quite early, just to make sure you catch him."

"Yes, that's what I'll do then. And thanks Elliot, for being such a caring and concerned brother to Christian, I know he doesn't always make it easy for you."

**oOo**

So the following morning I head off to my younger son's luxurious penthouse apartment. There was no doubt whatsoever that Christian was an extremely successful and hugely wealthy young man now. But was he happy? Would he ever be able to find any kind of personal contentment and act more like the twenty seven year old young man he was, rather than some cold, middle aged business tycoon?

Given the horrendously abusive early start in life that he'd had, it was no wonder that Christian was such a complex and difficult young man. I'll never forget the day he was brought into the hospital where I was the receiving doctor on duty. He was barely alive, he was so dehydrated and emaciated. The police believed that he'd been left alone shut up in a slum apartment with the body of his dead mother for several days after she died, with nothing to eat or drink. She was a drug addict, who had turned to prostitution to fund her crack cocaine addiction. Her young son had clearly been neglected and abused for most if not all of the four short years of his life with her. Her evil pimp had no doubt found having a young child around not conducive to securing clientele for his prostitute mother, and had taken his fury out on the poor child by beating and tormenting him.

It made me sick to my stomach to think of what this little boy had gone through. Even in the neglected state that he was in, he was such a beautiful child; he had a mop of unruly dark copper hair, piercing sad gray eyes, with a face that had the most exquisite bone structure. I think his mother could have made a fortune if she had only had the wherewithal to have gotten him to any modelling agency, instead of spending her time craving the next fix to get her back into a drug induced state of ecstasy. Of course he should have been taken into care years before, but was he one of those unfortunate kids who slip through the net, who never register on the social workers radar. I guess his natural mother must have loved him in her own way, as she had kept him and tried to look after him, even though she just wasn't capable.

I could barely contain my own fury as I'd tried to examine this beautiful little boy. He was filthy dirty and his clothes were little more than rags. He clung tightly to his precious soft comforter blanket, the only thing that seemed to bring him any solace. The nurse tried to take it away from him because it too was filthy, but I ordered her to let him keep it, as it was all he had in the world that he treasured. I could see that he had cigarette burns over his chest and back, as well as numerous cuts, bruises and other injuries, evidence of the brutal beatings that he'd clearly endured over a long period of time. He couldn't bear to be touched by anyone, and he was mute, never spoke a word or made a sound other than to scream if he was touched or handled in any way, although it was clear that he understood what was being said to him.

I went home in floods of tears that night, very reluctant to leave this poor little boy alone in the hospital, but having no choice. I'd already made up my mind that we were going to adopt him, come what may, and I begged Carrick to support me in my wish. Luckily he is a wonderful man and fully supported me, once I'd apprised him of all the horrendous facts.

I was unable to have children of my own, and we had already adopted one child, our son Elliot. He was a sweet natured boy, and I thought that he would be able to cope with us adopting a brother for him.

And so we adopted Christian, although naturally it took time for all the due process to be followed, despite the fact that we were already approved as adoptive parents. Christian had to be placed with foster parents while checks were made to ensure he didn't have any living relatives who would have the right to adopt him if they wished. No one was unearthed to come forward, so I got my wish, we adopted Christian and gave him our family name of Trevelyan Grey.

It was not easy. It soon became clear that he was an extremely bright and intelligent boy, but he still didn't talk. He would let us know what he wanted by nodding or shaking his head, or pointing to what he wanted. And he suffered the most dreadful nightmares that had him waking up drenched in sweat and screaming blood curdling screams. He still couldn't bear to be touched or held or cuddled, but I used to lie down next to him on the bed to calm him down, gently whispering and singing to him and stroking his hair. Eventually he would go back to sleep.

Finally we had a break through with Christian, when he was about six years old. I like to play the piano, and would play songs to the boys, in the hope that it might encourage Christian to find his voice and join in. Elliot would join in for a while, but would then get bored and run off to play with something else. But Christian would sit next to me on the piano stool and watch my hands on the keys, clearly fascinated.

"Would you like me to teach you how to play for yourself?" I tentatively asked him. I was thrilled when, after thinking about this for a minute or two, he nodded his head and gave me a little smile. So I did, and right from the start he clearly loved it. After just a few sessions, he'd picked it up so quickly that it was obvious he had a natural talent. We found him a proper piano teacher, and she said he was the most talented pupil she had ever had. And finally, Christian relaxed enough with us to start whispering a few words.

Then we adopted Mia to complete our family. She had been abandoned by her teenage mother when she was just a tiny baby, so we managed to adopt her by the time she was six months old. We thought long and hard about whether it was the right thing to do, as we already had our two boys, one of whom had special needs. In the end, we decided we had enough love to go around, and so would go ahead and do it. Christian was actually a very self-sufficient little boy, who looked after himself most of the time. He would eat anything that was put in front of him, and I encouraged him to help himself to any food he wanted if he was hungry, assuring him that he would never be scolded for doing so. On a healthy diet, he quickly filled out and grew to make up for lost time, and actually was quite tall for his age by the time he was six.

When we brought home baby Mia, Elliot was the most putout at having to put up with a demanding baby, while Christian simply adored her from day one. His love and concern for her made him speak to me more, as he hurried to fetch me if she was stirring in her crib, or if he thought she needed feeding or a diaper change.

"Mommy, mommy come now. Baby Mia needs you, Mommy," he would urge me, as he'd tug on my my sleeve insistently.

He would spend ages just watching her sleep, gently touching her cheek or stroking her dark silky baby hair. It was a revelation, and a turning point. This was the wonderful kind, caring little boy that had been hidden for so long behind his fear.

So Christian was able to go to normal school, but he found it difficult. He still couldn't bear to be touched in any way. He didn't make friends, and he had the most ferocious temper that could explode into uncontrollable rage at the slightest provocation. He was exceptionally bright, and found school boring because everything was so easy that it presented no challenge to him. We were reluctant to let him be accelerated into classes with older children, as we felt he needed to develop his personal skills first, but in the end we gave in, and he ended up in a lot of classes with his older brother.

Elliot was protective of Christian, but also a little scared of him because he had seen his violent temper in full vent. But Elliot's natural good nature and temperament meant that he always tried to look after his little brother, and I was proud of him for that. I'd explained to him when we first adopted Christian that he had been treated very unkindly when he was little, so it was our job as his family to make up for that by giving him extra love.

Of course when his teenage hormones started kicking in, Christian became a nightmare to handle. His violent temper frequently surfaced with a vengeance, and he got into a lot of trouble and was thrown out of school for fighting. I also suspected that he was drinking, and I even feared that he might turn to drugs as his mother had. From what we had found out about her, she had been an extremely clever girl who had won a scholarship to college, but had then got in with a bad crowd that dabbled in drugs, which was how she'd become addicted to crack cocaine. This had led to her dropping out of college and ending up as a prostitute. Her family had been killed in a car crash, so she had no one to turn to or to help her.

And somehow at that time, I could see history repeating itself as Christian seemed set on a similar path of self-destruction. It was a very worrying time, and I was lucky to have the support of my good friend Elena, who provided a shoulder for me to cry on as I unburdened myself to her with my worries about my son. We insisted Christian had to have counselling, but it didn't seem to help. And then when he was fifteen, coming up to sixteen, he suddenly seemed to calm down. Maybe his hormones levelled out, maybe the counsellor at the time finally managed to reach out to him. Whatever it was, he settled down, got on with his studies and eventually got into Harvard.

He hated Harvard. It wasn't so much the studying – he found anything to do with business and economics incredibly easy – I think it was the whole lifestyle. We tried to talk him out of dropping out when he had just a year left to complete, but he'd made up his mind. Carrick was furious with him, and I'm not sure he's ever really forgiven him, despite how successful he's become. Christian might be one of the wealthiest young men in America now, but his father still thinks he ought to have finished at Harvard before launching out into the business world.

As things stand now, I'm very proud of my son for his incredible business success, but I'm worried for his personal happiness. He was a beautiful little boy, and he's grown into a very beautiful young man, he is very handsome indeed. He literally has women swooning at his feet, and yet he shows no interest in any of them. He can be totally charming when he wants to, but that's as far as it goes. Christian has never brought a girlfriend home, and it doesn't seem natural to me. Most young men, like Elliot, have lots of girlfriends and give in freely to their natural feelings and needs.

So I've come to the conclusion that Christian just isn't interested in women, and that he is most likely gay. But as I've never seen him with a gay partner, I can only assume he's celibate. Lord alone knows what he saw as a small child when his prostitute mother entertained her clients, and maybe this helps to explain why he is repressed and celibate. I suppose I should at least be grateful that he hasn't turned out to be one of those disturbed young men that have unusual and depraved tastes.

So this morning as I make my way up in the elevator to his apartment, I'm worried that his damaged childhood is still affecting him, now that Elliot has told me of his concerns that he's becoming reclusive and withdrawn. I can't stand the thought of him brooding alone, and potentially having negative thoughts that could set him on a path to self-destruction again. Now that he's met the challenge of becoming super rich, what new challenges can he find? He has every material comfort he could possible want, but I don't believe that is enough for anyone to be truly happy. Carrick and I have been blessed in our very happy marriage, and I would so dearly like to see Christian find a life partner - a gay one if that's what would make him happy - to share everything he has with. It all seems so pointless otherwise.

When I reach his apartment and Taylor tells me Christian is still in bed, my worst fears are realized. Knowing how hard he still finds it to sleep and that he never sleeps in late, the only reason I can possibly imagine for him being in bed at this time of day is that he is in some way ill. I insist to Taylor that I have to see him, and determinedly make my way towards his bedroom.

_I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit_


	2. Chapter 2 The Coming Out

**Doctor Grace Trevelyan-Grey meets Anastasia Steele**

**Chapter 2 **

** The Coming Out**

_**A/N – IF YOU ARE WONDERING WHERE MY STORY 'MEET FIFTY SHADES CONTINUED' HAS GONE, IT WAS TAKEN DOWN BY THE ADMINISTRATORS OF FF FOR BEING TOO EXPLICIT. IF YOU STILL WANT TO READ IT AND FOLLOW NEW CHAPTERS, I HAVE SET UP A BLOG .DETAILS ARE ON MY FF PROFILE PAGE ALONG WITH MY EMAIL ADDRESS IF YOU WANT TO CONTACT ME ABOUT IT.**_

Taylor comes running after me as I head for my son's bedroom, because he's clearly under instructions from Christian not to let anyone in, and of course Taylor always does exactly what he's told because that's his job. But I'm not going to be fobbed off by anyone, not if my son could be lying wallowing in deep depression, or even worse contemplating suicide….

"Mrs Grey, there really is no need for you to concern yourself, Mr Grey is fine," he tries to block me.

"But if he's still in bed, then he must be ill. He's never in bed at this time. Christian never sleeps in." I push past him.

"Mrs Grey, please." Taylor tries to head me off again.

"Taylor. You cannot keep me from my son." _No one_ is going to prevent me from checking on my son if he's ill. I'm determined to see him.

"Mrs Grey, he's not _alone_." Taylor stares at me and raises his eyebrows, clearly trying to convey some deep hidden message to me.

"What do you mean, he's not alone?"

"He has _someone_ with him." Taylor spells it out to me, as he indicates the bedroom with his head.

"Oh…"

The penny finally drops. He means that Christian is _in bed_ with someone. That possibility hadn't even occurred to me. He's entertaining a 'friend' of some description. He's not celibate. _Oh God!_ I stumble towards the couch and shakily sit down. Taylor backs away, satisfied now that I'm not going to go ahead and march right into my son's bedroom. I realise that Christian will no doubt have heard me just outside his bedroom door and will be making his way out just as soon as he's decent.

_Oh God! _Who on earth is this 'someone' going to be? Taylor, ever the soul of discretion, hasn't specified any gender, so that definitely makes me think it's a guy. Does this mean Christian has a partner he's been keeping secret from us? Is he ashamed of his boyfriend, too embarrassed or worried that his family will be judgemental or unsupportive of him? If that is the case, then I'm truly disappointed, because I thought I'd made it plain to him numerous times that I just want him to be happy, and will support his choices whatever his sexuality. So I quickly decide to be friendly and welcoming to his boyfriend if he brings him out and introduces him to me, to show that I'm perfectly fine about it, and not upset or shocked in any way.

But then it occurs to me…what if…_Oh God…_what if he doesn't have a regular boyfriend, but is being secretive because he's using some sort of a male prostitute instead, some 'crack head rent boy' type that I've heard people refer to. Someone he's paying just to satisfy his sexual needs. Then I assume Christian will most likely keep this 'someone' hidden away from me in the bedroom. I'm just going to have to play this by ear, wait and see how Christian acts and what he says to me.

I hear the door open, and Christian makes his way out, wearing his usual casual attire of jeans and t shirt, but with nothing on his feet. He looks his normal, very handsome, tousled hair self. I don't let myself dwell on the reason why his cheeks look flushed and his eyes are sparkling. _Too much information._

He casually strolls over, leans down to kiss me and then sits down next to me on the couch. An amused little smile is playing around his mouth – at least he doesn't look angry or upset that I'm here, so that's a good start.

"This is an unexpected pleasure," he says, appearing very relaxed.

"How are you Christian?" I ask, as I scrutinise his face, trying to judge if I dare ask who he's got in the bedroom with him. I don't want to risk upsetting him, so I wait to see what he's going to say.

"I'm good thanks. How's Dad?" he replies casually.

"He's as busy as ever, you know what he's like," I reply absent mindely, as I can't help glancing over at the bedroom door. It seems he's not going to say anything about whoever it is he's got lurking in there. But as this is the first chance I've ever had to get closer to discovering anything at all about my enigmatic son's personal relationships and sexuality, I'm not giving up just yet.

"Mia's due back soon isn't she?" he says next, clearly just making polite chit chat in a most unlike Christian way. Is he waiting for me to go? Should I just come out and say something, ask him straight out?

"Yes, that's right she is, and she's asked if you can pick her up from the airport, if that's alright darling. I think she's missed you while she's been in Paris."

"Yeah, I've missed her too, and I've already said I'll be there to pick her up, she emailed me."

"That's good then." I try smiling, but then watch in horrified fascination as I realise the bedroom door is slowly opening. Right, I quickly tell myself. Plaster a smile on your face Grace girl, and whatever you do, don't appear shocked or upset in any way whatsoever. Breathe in slowly, deep breath, in and out. Be calm and welcoming, whoever walks out of that door. I'm broad minded enough to handle this. I have to be for Christian.

But I can't help it. I'm shocked to my very core when I see just who it is making their way out of his bedroom. My eyes simply can't take in what I'm seeing. It can't be…surely not…this can't be right…does this mean… but I was _sure _he was…

It's a beautiful young woman who nervously makes her way out. A girl. A female. Christian has a girlfriend. A sweet, beautiful young girl. Clearly not a hooker of any sort at all. She's perfect. Just perfect. I think I'm going to cry. _Don't make a complete idiot of yourself for goodness sake._ But Christian has a _girlfriend_.

By her flushed cheeks and sparkling eyes that mirror my son's, it's very obvious just exactly what they've been getting up to in his bedroom, no doubt about that at all. So that means…he's not gay. Christian is not gay. He's just a late developer with girls, that's all it's been. I've worried myself sick for years over nothing.

"Here she is," he proudly says. He stands up and then possessively pulls her next to him as she makes her way over to us, blushing shyly. She's very slim, simply dressed in jeans, a blue shirt and a jacket. Her long brown hair is tied back in a ponytail, and she's not wearing a scrap of makeup, or any jewellery. She doesn't need to; she's a natural beauty with stunning big blue eyes. She's just adorable, and I am over the moon with delight as I'm sure my huge beaming smile gives away.

"Mother, this is Anastasia Steele. Anastasia, this is Grace Trevelyan-Grey." Christian's manners are impeccable as he formally introduces us.

"What a pleasure to meet you." I somehow manage to get the words out as we shake hands. I'm still pretty incredulous with shock, I still can't quite believe this is actually happening. It's like a dream sequence, because this is exactly what I would wish for my dear boy. A chance of happiness just like Carrick and I found together.

"Dr. Trevelyan-Grace," she murmurs shyly as we shake hands.

"Call me Grace," I smile warmly at her. "I am usually Dr. Trevelyan, and Mrs. Grey is my mother-in-law."

I can see Christian frowning in surprise, as he knows that I rarely let people call me by my first name unless I know them really well. To hell with formality, I want to get close to this wondrous young girl, make her feel welcome. I wink at her.

"So how did you two meet?" Where on earth did Christian meet someone like her? She's nothing like any of the classic blonde ice maiden types he always seems to employ around himself in his office.

"Anastasia interviewed me for the student paper at WSU because I'm conferring the degrees there this week." Christian explains.

Ah right, that explains things. She doesn't work for him in any way. Just a chance meeting. Serendipity.

"So you are graduating this week?" I ask Anastasia. I quickly work out that means she is probably only around twenty one or so. Quite a bit younger than Christian, but that's okay. Carrick is eight years older than me. It also explains why she is so sweet and shy, she's just a student. My word, she's being swept off her feet by being courted by my handsome billionaire son, poor little thing. But I think she's just perfect for Christian, a breath of fresh air.

"Yes," she replies, but then excuses herself to go and answer her cell phone that's ringing somewhere in the kitchen. I watch and smile gleefully to myself as I see Christian hungrily gazing over at her - he simply can't take his eyes off her. He's clearly totally smitten and head over heels in love with her.

"And Elliot called to say you were around – I haven't seen you for two weeks, darling." He's not really listening to me as I talk to him, but I don't mind. Of course this Anastasia explains why Christian seemed so preoccupied to Elliot yesterday – he can't stop thinking about his new girlfriend. It all makes perfect sense now. Oh I am just so relieved and happy at this unexpected turn of events. Wait till I tell Carrick, he's going to be just as surprised as I am.

"Did he now?" Christian murmurs as Anastasia re-joins us. He just stares at her, and I feel as if I'm intruding. Time to take my leave. Two's company….

"I thought we might have lunch together, but I can see you have other plans, and I don't want to interrupt your day," I say as I pick up my coat and proffer my cheek for him to kiss me goodbye.

"I have to drive Anastasia back to Portland," he explains, as he gently pecks me.

"Of course, darling. Anastasia, it's been such a pleasure. I do hope we meet again," I tell her as we shake hands.

_ Please, please, please, let this work out for my sweet boy_. He might be the super-rich CEO of Grey Enterprises to the rest of the world, but to me, underneath it all he is still the damaged little boy that I adopted, and I want him to find some happiness. I have such a good feeling about this sweet young woman, I really do. I think she might just prove to be his salvation, balm to his poor wounded soul. Carrick always says I'm an incurable romatic.

Taylor escorts me out through the double doors to the foyer and presses the button to call the elevator for me. I'm hugging myself and I know that I have a huge soppy smile on my face as I look over at Taylor.

"He's head over heels isn't he?" I can't help myself, I have to say something or I'll burst because I'm so happy.

"I couldn't possibly comment, Mrs Grey," Taylor says, but he has a huge grin on his face too, and then gives me a sly wink. Yes, he too is clearly pretty happy about this turn of events. Having worked for my son for several years now, I know how fiercely loyal and protective of him he is, so I'm sure he would dearly like to see him happily settled with a good woman.

I'm just so glad I came over today. I must remember to let Elliot know that he doesn't need to worry after all. Goodness, but he is going to be so surprised to find out that his brother has a girlfriend. He probably won't even believe me, but I've seen it with my own eyes now.

_I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit_


	3. Chapter 3 The Girlfriend

**Doctor Grace Trevelyan-Grey meets Anastasia Steele**

**Chapter 3 - The Girlfriend**

**__****A/N – IF YOU ARE WONDERING WHERE MY STORY 'MEET FIFTY SHADES CONTINUED' HAS GONE, IT WAS TAKEN DOWN BY THE ADMINISTRATORS OF FF FOR BEING TOO EXPLICIT. IF YOU STILL WANT TO READ IT AND FOLLOW NEW CHAPTERS, I HAVE SET UP A BLOG .DETAILS ARE ON MY FF PROFILE PAGE ALONG WITH MY EMAIL ADDRESS IF YOU WANT TO CONTACT ME ABOUT IT.**

The house has come alive now that Mia has returned from Paris. On her first evening home, we had a family meal to welcome her back, and I insisted that everyone had to attend, no excuses from the boys, family first for once. We had a wonderful evening, with lots of merriment as Mia regaled us with stories about her time in Paris.

However, I did have to warn Elliot not to be so crude as he teased Christian about his new girlfriend, having spent the day helping the girls move from Portland to Seattle. I swear I almost saw Christian blush when Elliot told him,

"By the way, Ana said to say 'Hi' to you."

"Did she now," Christian muttered, as he toyed with his glass of wine, a frown marring his face.

"Aw, you're all lovesick, aren't you little bro."

"Shut it, Elliot."

"Looked like a very comfortable mattress I helped carry in for Ana's bed, you'll be pleased to hear. Nice and bouncy, if you catch my drift. I bet you can't wait to try out it out with her in their new place. You've really got some catching up to do in that department, haven't you?"

Elliot had a huge grin on his face as he said this, play punching his brother's arm.

"I told you to _shut up_," Christian growled, as he grabbed Elliot's fist to force it back.

"Enough, boys!" I stepped in. Elliot can be a touch insensitive at times. It's always a fine line with Christian, knowing how far you can push him. Clearly he is very sensitive about his new girlfriend, and I didn't want anything to spoil the evening.

Still, I know that underneath all that banter, Elliot really is a very caring big brother, especially after confiding his recent worries to me that Christian was becoming withdrawn and depressed. Thank goodness that after my unannounced visit the other weekend, I was able to reassure him that his fears were unfounded. Maybe he knows Christian better than the rest of us however, as he didn't seem all that surprised when I told him about Anastasia. Maybe he already had his suspicions, as his new girlfriend Kate is her best friend.

After dinner, Mia begged Christian to play a piece for her on the piano.

"Please Christian, I got the sheet music especially so you could play it, because it is _sooo_ beautiful," she pleaded, as she handed it to him. "And there's a cello accompaniment, so I thought maybe we could play it together eventually, once you've mastered it."

Christian frowned as he studied it.

"Oh God, not more of that rubbish Twilight shit you like so much," he groaned. I frowned back at him for swearing, and he shrugged his apology at me. "And anyway, when did you last play your cello?"

"_Pleease_, Christian. Just try playing it for me, then maybe I'll be inspired to get back into playing. Or maybe I'll just sing the vocals with you instead, because the words are really cool when Christina Perri sings them. I bet Anastasia would love it, it's _really_ romantic," Mia implored him. And of course he was unable refuse his little sister, so he just sighed and took the music sheet over to the piano.

Christian is such a naturally gifted musician that after he'd sat and played around with the score for just a short while, he'd pretty much mastered it.

We all sat spellbound as we listened to him play. It was wonderful. Even Carrick, who is not really a musical person, was entranced.

"Oh darling, that was simply beautiful," I told him when he finished playing. "What is that piece called? I'm not familiar with it at all."

"Err…says here it's called 'A Thousand Years'. Like I said, it's part of all that Twilight sh…rubbish Mia's addicted to," he pronounced grouchily. I suppose I could understand that unlike my daughter, Teen Vampire romance stories were hardly likely to appeal to Christian. But nevertheless, I noticed that he took the music score home with him when he left later that night.

It isn't often that I have all three of my children at home, so having them visit two days running made it a very special weekend. Mia managed to persuade the boys to bring their respective new girlfriends round for dinner again the next evening, so she could give them her personal stamp of approval. This was no problem with Elliot, as he happily agreed to bring Kate along, but needless to say Mia had her work cut out with Christian.

But she is pretty much an unstoppable force once she sets her mind to something, and in any case she can twist her big brother Christian round her little finger in a way that no one else can. She wheeled me in to add weight to her argument, so Christian finally agreed that he would bring Anastasia to our family dinner on Sunday.

"But be gentle with her, Mia," he warned. "She's not used to a big family like ours, she's actually pretty shy and you…well you're you," he teased, as he ruffled her hair.

"Hey, don't mess with the hair, you big bully," she teased back, as she reached up to ruffle his hair in return.

Of course Christian's hair didn't look any different, as it always looks tousled anyway. He's one of those fortunate people who don't have to spend hours on grooming, because he is just naturally a very good looking, very handsome young man. Almost too good looking I sometimes think; which is maybe why we all accepted so easily that he was gay. A lot of very 'pretty' young men do turn out to be gay after all, but it seems that we were all mistaken on that score with Christian. Mind you, I'm not sure that Carrick as totally convinced about this initially.

"Are you sure it's not just wishful thinking on your part, Grace? This girl you saw him with, maybe she's just a new PA or something? You know how he carries on working right through the weekend, so maybe he had her there to complete some paperwork," he suggested when I excitedly told him all about meeting Christian's _girlfriend_ when I returned from dropping in on him that day at his apartment.

"Carrick, I know it seems hard to believe after all this time with not so much as a hint of any kind of a girlfriend, but when I arrived at his apartment, they were in his _bedroom_ together, for crying out loud. I nearly walked right in on them; it was only Taylor practically barring the way that stopped me from making a complete idiot of myself. And I'm telling you, there is no doubt at all in my mind that they were…well you _know_…"

"Put it this way – they clearly weren't in there playing scrabble together, were they?" Elliot, who had dropped in for a quick visit at the time, unhelpfully called out from the other side of the room with a great big smirk on his face.

"Yes, thank you Elliot, I get the picture," Carrick huffed. "Well, even if that is the case, who is this girl anyway? What do we know about her? Christian is an extremely wealthy young man, so inevitably he's going to present a very lucrative prize to a certain type of female. Especially as he's so inexperienced with women; I think he'd easily fall prey to their seductive feminine wiles. And you know how impulsive and unreasonable he can be at times, stubborn too, just like when he dropped out of Harvard…"

I quickly interrupted him then, not wanting to him to start up about all that again.

"You are so cynical sometimes Carrick Grey. You sound just like Elena when she rang earlier. I told her about Christian having a girlfriend, and she made some similar rather nasty 'gold-digger' insinuations. Look, just trust me, call it a mother's intuition if you will, but I could tell that Anastasia was simply a lovely, sweet, natural young girl. It was a stroke of good luck that she came to interview him for the WSU student paper, and that he's fallen for her," I insisted. "It can happen that way sometimes. I know you're just being protective of him, but please, leave your hardnosed lawyer persona at work please, and just be happy for our son."

But Carrick finds it so hard to switch off his protective father/lawyer mode, so of course he couldn't help himself, he still had to quiz Elliot about the girls after he'd spent the day with them helping with their move. I think Carrick was reassured to discover that he knew Katherine Kavanagh's father, as he'd dealt with him in a professional capacity and considered him to be a decent, respectable kind of man.

"Hmm, so at least Kate comes from a decent family," he pondered. "But this Anastasia, we really don't know anything about her at all do we?"

"Dad, you worry too much. Just chill, Ana's a real nice girl, very honest and down to earth. You'll see for yourself when you meet her. You're just gonna love her, I know you are," Elliot assured his father, who didn't look at all convinced.

The thought of Christian bringing home his first girlfriend was indeed a very novel one, and of course Mia was just dying to meet her. She made me tell her every little detail that I could possibly recall about Anastasia several times over that day, as we planned out and made preparations for the meal.

"So, is she stunningly beautiful, like in a top model kind of way? I mean Christian is so hot looking that he could have practically any girl he wanted, couldn't he? Or guy, come that, if he was gay. Do you think maybe he's bi, mom?"

"Really, Mia! No, I don't think your brother is bi-sexual, I believe it's simply a case of him being a late bloomer as far as girls are concerned, but now he's met the right girl, she's awakened his interest romantically. He's been spending all of his time up to now totally immersed and focussed on work, which of course goes a long way to explaining why he's as successful as he is. Speaking of which, you ought to talk to him to get his advice about this plan of yours to set up a high end catering business, now that you've completed your Parisian haute cuisine course."

"Yeah, mom, I was planning to. I mean, he's like the ace man, the top dude when it comes to all that business stuff isn't he?" she said proudly. She looks up to Christian and adores him in such a touching way.

"And as for Anastasia, I would describe her as being beautiful in a very natural way, unlike those fake model types you see, plastered in makeup and so forth. I think that's probably why she appeals to Christian – she must seem like a breath of fresh air to him in his high powered, executive world."

"Oh I can't wait to meet her. I just _know_ we're going to be best friends," Mia sighed.

"That would be lovely, darling. So tonight, let's make a real effort so that both she and Kate are made to feel very welcome. I really want them to feel part of this family, so that the boys are happy to bring them home any time they want. That way, we'll really get to know them, wont we?"

"Of course, mom, you know you can count on me," Mia beamed happily.

Elliot arrived first with his new girlfriend Kate. She seems a lovely girl, very attractive, as well as outgoing and confident. She's clearly besotted with Elliot, as she hung on his every word and couldn't take her eyes off him. But she's also a very bright and talented young woman, and Carrick seemed quite taken with her, as he chatted with her about her father. Perhaps she'll be a good influence on Elliot, help him to settle down, instead of having a new girlfriend just about every week. He's so very different from his brother in that respect, that's for sure.

Then we heard Christian's car arrive, so Carrick and I went and waited for them by the front door.

"Don't you dare spoil this evening with any of your nasty, suspicious probing with Anastasia. I'll never forgive you if you upset Christian in any way that would prevent him from bringing her home again," I hissed at Carrick, who looked rather wounded by my words.

"Of course not, I'd never do that," he protested.

As I saw them get out of the car and make their way over to us, I was thrilled to see them both. They make such a lovely couple, and I had to pinch myself to be convinced this was actually happening. _Yes, it's really true, Christian has a girlfriend, I didn't just dream it._

"Anastasia, you've met my mother, Grace. This is my dad, Carrick." Christian politely made the formal introductions – I brought my children up to show good manners at all times.

"Mr Grey, what a pleasure to meet you," Anastasia smiled, as she took his outstretched hand.

"The pleasure is all mine, Anastasia," Carrick responded. I saw his eyes shrewdly examining her and then softening as he failed to detect the slightest hint of 'gold-digger' about this young woman. I relaxed a little then, relieved. _See, I told you she was a lovely young girl, didn't I?_

"Please, call me Ana," she insisted.

"Ana, how lovely to see you again," I told her, as I wrapped her in a big welcoming hug. "Come in, my dear."

Then Mia, who had been chatting amiably to Kate and Elliot in the living room, suddenly realised that her other brother had arrived.

"Is she here?" she screeched, as she came running down the hall, and I saw Anastasia looking over at Christian rather nervously.

"That would be Mia, my little sister," he quietly reassured her.

"Anastasia! I've heard so much about you," exclaimed my daughter, as she gave her a big hug.

"Ana, please," she replied, seeming rather bemused as Mia dragged her inside.

"He's never brought a girl home before," Mia told her excitedly.

"Mia, calm down," I told her, as I saw Christian rolling his eyes. I was very aware that this was very new territory for all of us.

"Hello, darling," I said, as I kissed my darling boy on both his cheeks, and was relieved to see that he was still smiling as he shook his father's hand.

As we made our way into the living room, there were more greetings, which seemed rather cool between Kate and Christian I noticed, but then Elliot played his part to make Ana feel welcome by giving her a big hug. I think maybe the poor girl felt rather overwhelmed by all this attention. Just as well I resisted the temptation to invite the grandparents over as well, even though I knew they would have loved to have been included.

But then it was just the sweetest thing to see Christian standing there by Ana's side, with his arm around her protectively, pulling her even closer to him. They made such a lovely couple, and I suddenly realised that we were all just gawping and staring at them. I suppose because it seemed such an unbelievable sight – one that we never expected to see. Christian with a girlfriend. Even Carrick just stood there staring at them with a soppy little grin on his face, before he quickly pulled himself together.

"Drinks? Prosecco?" he offered.

"Please," Christian and Ana answered in union, which was again so very sweet, and showed how they already seemed be thinking as one.

Mia clapped her hands in delight. "You're even saying the same things. I'll get them."

"Dinner's almost ready," I told everyone, as I followed my daughter out of the room.

Once we were in the kitchen and out of ear shot, Mia turned to me and trilled in her usual over the top manner,

"Mom, they are just _sooo cute_ together aren't they? I mean Anastasia is just the _sweetest_ thing, and you could see Christian doing his alpha male over protective thing by putting his arm possessively round her like that, you know, after Elliot hugged her. He is obviously _crazy_ about her. And now I totally get what you were saying about her being a natural beauty, she's lovely. I really like her," Mia pronounced with a huge, contented sigh.

"I'm pleased to hear it, Mia darling. I like her very much too. Now, are you going to take that Prosecco in to them while I get this dinner on the table?"

I couldn't help noticing Christian holding Anastasia back to whisper urgently in her ear as everyone made their way into the dining room, and I just hoped it wasn't some kind of a lovers tiff, although it didn't look too promising, judging by the expressions on their faces.

As we all sat together around the table, I could see Mia getting on like a house on fire with Kate, which I was pleased about. But I could see Christian and Ana continue to whisper to each other. I wasn't the only one who noticed either.

"What are you two whispering about?" Kate boldly asked, making it clear that she was not a shy young woman, especially as she didn't even quail when Christian gave her one of his infamous black looks.

"Just about my trip to Georgia," Anastasia answered. I didn't know anything about this, but I guessed that was possibly what she and Christian had been whispering about. He didn't like the idea of her going away, maybe.

"How was José when you went to the bar with him on Friday?" Kate asked Ana, with what seemed like a knowing glance at Christian.

I looked over at Christian, and was shocked to see a look of fury in his eyes. Who on earth was this José then? An ex-boyfriend of Ana's or something? And why was Kate bringing this up now?

"He was fine," Ana murmured. Christian leaned over and whispered to her again, and I saw her literally squirming in her seat. This did not look promising, and I worried that things were already going wrong for this young couple. I hoped that it was just some kind of a misunderstanding.

Then as Gretchen was bringing the food in, the phone rang, and it turned out to be the hospital for me. Worryingly, we had another measles case. If only people would get their kids vaccinated! It made me reminisce about when our children were small, although the worst thing they ever had was chicken pox, with poor Elliot getting far more spots than the other two.

Much to my relief, Christian seemed to have gotten over his snit with Ana, as he relaxed and joined in the conversation with everyone, so I took the opportunity to chat to Ana to get to know her a bit better. She told me how their move to Seattle had gone very well, and from what she told me it sounded like a very nice apartment that Kate's father has settled them in. I hope they'll be very happy there, and I'm just so happy they've moved up closer to the boys here in to Seattle.

Then the conversation turned to Paris, as Mia and Kate chatted about their favorite things about the city. Ana confessed she's never been there, and I suspect she's probably never even left mainland USA. Christian said he thought Anastasia would prefer London in any case, and I couldn't help thinking that he could easily take her to Paris and London; in fact he could show her the world, they could share so many wonderful experiences together. _Grace, stop it. You're getting way ahead of yourself. They've only just got together haven't they?_

The talk of Paris brought back so many happy memories because Carrick and I honeymooned there, more years ago than I care to recall. I looked over at Carrick, and he smiled back at me happily, as he recalled it too. We have certainly been blessed in our very happy marriage. He was a tower of strength for me when I discovered that I couldn't have children, and thought that my world had collapsed. But as is often the way in life, what seemed the closing of one door, was in fact the opening of another.

Adopting our three wonderful children has brought the most indescribable joy into our lives, even if it has also provided many challenges over the years – especially with Christian. But he was the one who needed us the most; he was the one who had existed in the type of hell that no child should ever have to endure for four long years, before we finally got to him, and I thank my lucky stars every day that we were given the chance to rescue our darling boy. Thank God that some sort of guardian angel was watching over him to ensure that I was the one on duty at the hospital on the day that he was brought in, only just alive. Because that angel would have known that once I'd seen him, I would have moved heaven and earth to be allowed take care of him.

So as I looked over at him, sitting there with his sweet new girlfriend that he has obviously fallen head over heels in love with, I found myself hoping and praying that same guardian angel was going to make sure he got the final key to happiness in life that he deserves. Materially, he has everything and more than any man could ever wish for, but as his mother, I know that he needs _love_in his life to finally make him the complete man he should be. The happy, kind, loving man that we sometimes catch a glimpse of – I think maybe Mia sees more of that side of him than anyone else. But watching him, seeing the way he was so solicitous when Ana choked on her wine, I could see that's how he is with her too.

I was thrilled to see how Kate and Elliot couldn't take their eyes of each other either. It seemed that love is in the air for both my boys, and I was delighted.

After dinner, as Mia and I were clearing away, Christian came into the kitchen, leading Ana behind him.

"I'm going to show Anastasia the backyard,' he pronounced, and I happily waved them out. No doubt he wanted to be alone with her, I smiled to myself. Who would ever have believed this would be happening, even just a short while ago? Christian taking his girlfriend out for a romantic walk, holding her hand, stealing kisses. I hugged myself with glee at this wonderful turn of events.

They were gone quite a while, and it was only when Elliot and Kate were making moves to leave that I finally allowed Mia to go and find them, having ordered her to leave them alone previously.

"Let them be, Mia darling. Give them some space, some time alone together," I insisted.

Mia sighed irritably as she looked over at Kate and Elliot sitting together on the couch again, barely able to keep their hands off each other. It was clear that they were very attracted to each other indeed.

"I think those two need to get a room," she whispered loudly to me, as she rolled her eyes in disgust, and I had to hide a smile at my daughter's reaction. Carrick and I used to be just like that, many moons ago. _Never did us any harm._

Mia turned up with Christian and Anastasia in tow just as Kate and Elliot were making their farewells.

"We should go, too – you have interviews tomorrow," Christian reminded Ana.

"We never thought he'd find anyone!" Mia exclaimed, as she hugged Ana, and I could see Christian rolling his eyes again.

"Take care of yourself, Ana dear," I told her warmly. But before I could embrace her, Christian grabbed her hand and pulled her over to his side.

"Let's not frighten her away or spoil her with too much affection," he grumbled.

"Christian, stop teasing," I scolded him, understanding that my darling son is just being protective of his girl, worried that she'd find us all rather overpowering, as I recalled him telling Mia yesterday that Ana was shy and unused to large families. As he bent down to kiss me good bye, I thought it was very sweet of him to be so caring about her.

"Mr Grey – goodbye and thank you," Ana held out her hand to Carrick, but seemed taken by surprise when he hugged her instead. Of course I was delighted that he seemed to have forgotten his misgivings about this young woman.

"Please, call me Carrick. I do hope we see you again, very soon, Ana," he smiled at her.

With that, they headed out to the car where Taylor was waiting. Of course, I'd made sure he'd had something to eat while he was waiting to drive them back. I always feel happy when Taylor is around my son, reassured that someone is looking out for him, so the least I can do is make sure the man is kept well fed and watered whenever he's at our place. He's always very polite and appreciative anyway.

"I just hope Christian wasn't boring Ana this evening when they went outside, because do you know where I found them? In the boathouse, where he was showing her his rowing trophies from Harvard. I mean, you'd think he'd find something more romantic to do with her, wouldn't you?" Mia commented, as we made our way back indoors.

"Oh I imagine he found other things to show her too," I smiled, imagining that Christian had no doubt managed to steal a kiss or two with his lovely young lady during the course of the evening.

_I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit_


	4. Chapter 4 The Masked Ball

**_For anyone looking for my other story, 'Meet Fifty Shades Continued', it was taken down by the admin of FanFiction for being too explicit, s_****_o I have set up my own christiangrey50shades blog if you would like to read it: For further details, check out my profile._**

**Doctor Grace Trevelyan-Grey Meets Anastasia Steele**

**Chapter 4**

**The Masked Ball**

_I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit._

Carrick and I have been hosting our annual fundraising event for Coping Together for many years now, so we have a very well-rehearsed schedule to follow, to make sure everything runs like clockwork. We are very lucky; we can count on the support of many of the rich and famous of Seattle, as well as others from across the country. But if we are expecting these affluent patrons to spend large sums of money at our fund raiser, we have to ensure that every last detail has been taken care of to make it a truly memorable evening.

Inevitably there are always some changes and alterations that need to be made, but generally speaking we use the same caterers, florists, musicians, pyro-technicians and so forth from year to year. Why change a winning formula?

Preparations for the following year start as soon as one event has finished, while things are fresh in our minds about what worked well, and what was not so successful. We choose a different theme each year, which is always the fun part. This year, on Mia's suggestion, we decided to make it a Masked Ball, and she has been enthusiastically involved in all the arrangements since her return from Paris. She has been an absolute God send, as I have incredibly busy at the hospital due to the measles epidemic.

Mia has seen to it that everyone who has bought a ticket understands that they have to wear a mask for the entire evening, until permission is given to remove it.

Coping Together is a charity that is very close to our hearts. Christian suffered appalling deprivation during his early formative years, because there was no one that Ella, his birth mother, felt able to turn to for the help and support she desperately needed. As a young single parent struggling to cope, with no family around to offer her any kind of support, she became addicted to crack heroin. If she knew who Christian's father was, she never disclosed that information to anyone as far as we could discover, and his birth certificate simply lists his father as 'unknown'.

That made it virtually impossible to trace his father; but in any case, Christian has never shown the slightest interest in doing so. He must have been a pretty distinctive man though, as Christian didn't inherit either his trademark dark copper hair or his musical ability from his mother. I also imagine Christian takes after his father in being so tall and well built, as his birth mother was a small, slim girl, with a pale complexion and long brown hair. But as she was a gifted mathematician, I think he must have inherited from her his extraordinary ability of being able to just glance at a complicated spreadsheet and be able to instantly comprehend and accurately interpret the figures.

Once Ella had got herself into such a terrible, self-destructive downward spiral, it was sadly only too inevitable that she would ultimately end up as a prostitute to fund her addiction, no doubt coerced by her dealer, who then became her pimp.

It is a desperately sad story, and such a waste of a very talented but vulnerable young girl's life – she was only twenty three when she passed away, not much older than Anastasia. I believe she was too scared to ask for help from the authorities, because she feared they would take her child away from her. Despite all her problems, Ella clearly loved her son very much, and did not want to be parted from him, although most people would probably argue that it would have been far better for him if she had handed him over.

Perhaps she would have felt more able to ask for help if she had been able to turn to an organization that was non-judgmental, one that simply promised to give as much support and help as possible, no questions asked, whatever the circumstances. Maybe if an organization such as Coping Together had existed then, perhaps they could have enabled her to cope and look after her child, and then Christian would not have had to endure the terrible hardships that he did.

They do wonderful work, and every cent we raise goes directly to support them. I'm truly proud to be associated with such a worthwhile organization.

Christian always gives his full and very generous support to this and the other charities we are involved with. As a pediatrician and a mother, inevitably there are several children's charities that I have found myself drawn to and getting involved with. But I think it would be very unfair to burden him with some of the horrifying details of the abuse I learn details about, because that would only serve to dredge up terrible memories for him.

Although he never admits it, or even talks about it to anyone other than Dr. Flynn, I know that Christian still bears the deep scars of his terrible early years. Despite many years of all kinds of therapy, he still really struggles with his abandonment issues, haunted as he is by his memories of terrible abuse and his birth mother's horrific death.

I think maybe this goes a long way to explaining why he has never formed any kind of a personal attachment to anyone, even keeping us, his close family, at arm's length, and why I am so thrilled to finally see him overcome this barrier by starting a relationship with Anastasia. She seems to have reached him in a way that no one has ever done before, and I truly think she could be his salvation in overcoming his issues, to finally find some well-deserved personal happiness.

xXx

A week before the Masked Ball, Mia, Carrick and I were going through all the final arrangements and details.

"It's such a shame that Elliot's going to miss it this year, he's always such good fun at these events," Mia sighed

"Yes, I know, darling, but he seems to be having a wonderful vacation in Barbados with Kate, doesn't he?"

"Yes, did I show you the latest text he sent me? I can't believe he hasn't got bored with Kate yet. This must be an all-time record for him."

*_Hey sis, Barbados beats rainy Seattle any day of the week*_

Mia held up her phone to show me the text with a picture of Kate and Elliot on the beach. It showed a very loved up young couple, clearly having a wonderful time. Perhaps he's finally met his match in Kate – I would be very happy if that was the case. It's about time he stopped fooling around and thought about settling down. I think he's sown more than his fair share of wild oats, and he's been lucky there haven't been any unfortunate consequences that we are aware of. At least that's one worry we haven't had with Christian, one advantage of him being such a late developer with girls.

"Elliot was lucky to be able to take off like that. I just hope he won't regret leaving his team in charge of finishing off the Collinson Project. It wasn't very professional of him," grumbled Carrick.

He always takes a very active interest in all three of his children's careers, offering them his advice and the benefit of his experience and wisdom, and then getting upset when it's ignored, even though I've told him numerous times that's pretty standard behavior from one's offspring.

"Oh, come on, you're only young once. And you know what they say 'all work and no play…' I'm sure he has it all under control," I tried to reassure him.

Elliot has always had a very relaxed and laid back approach to work and to life in general, which Carrick sometimes finds hard to comprehend. Lawyers are rarely laid back about anything, in my experience.

"Talking of all work and no play, have you been able to get hold of Christian at all, Mom? I've left several messages and emails, and he hasn't answered any of them, which is not like him. I know he's always ridiculously busy, but he usually gets back to me pretty quickly," Mia queried.

To be honest, I had also been trying to get hold of Christian and not having much luck. Ever since I'd excitedly told my mother about his sweet new girlfriend, she had been dying to meet Anastasia, and had been pestering me to arrange a family dinner for this purpose. So I too had been trying to get hold of Christian to invite him and Anastasia to lunch or dinner on Sunday, but, like Mia, I had not heard back from him, which I had to agree was unusual.

My mother loves all her grandchildren equally, but she does have a special soft spot for Christian, because she has such vivid memories of the shocking state he was in when we first adopted him. Just like me, she is very proud of him for the success he has achieved in his career, but she is even more desperate than me for him to find some personal happiness.

"What's the good of immense wealth if he's all by himself, living his life as a lonely, crusty bachelor? What he needs is the love of a good woman to sort him out - one that will open his eyes and spark his interest in the bedroom, instead of spending all his time pouring over all those boring facts and figures to make yet another million. I would love nothing better than to see him happily married, and getting on with producing some great-grandkids for me to bounce on my knee before I depart this world," she has declared on several occasions.

"He needs to let me know what masks he wants for the ball. I even asked him for Anastasia's number so I could speak to her direct about it, but he hasn't responded to that either. Perhaps I should just drop by his apartment, see if I can catch him that way," Mia pondered.

"Err no, I don't think that's such a good idea," I hastily replied, remembering how embarrassed I'd been when I'd dropped in on Christian unannounced and had practically walked in on him and Anastasia _in flagrante delicto_, just because Elliot and I had been worried about him – unnecessarily as it turned out. "I expect he's been so involved with Anastasia, that he's not got round to contacting us yet. Just give him a bit more time, Mia darling."

I think even Taylor would probably be unable to stop Mia from insisting on seeing her brother if she turned up at his apartment unannounced. She would just go right ahead and march straight into his bedroom whatever he said, because she is pretty much unstoppable once she sets her mind to something.

"Can't you women just leave the poor boy alone, for goodness sake? Give him some space so that he and Anastasia can get to know each other, without his family dropping by every five minutes. These things take time, you know," Carrick declared.

"Look Dad, it's really important, you know? I mean, I just want to be sure he's bringing Ana to the ball, because you know how difficult Christian can be about these things. I can't wait to see my friend's faces when they see him with a girlfriend, especially Lily. They think I'm making it up, or that I've got it all wrong, because they're all certain he has to be gay, just because he's never shown the slightest interest in any of them."

"I think we'll just have to wait for Christian to get in touch. I know the event is definitely in his diary, and if all else fails, nearer the time I'll check with Andrea to see if he's still planning to attend. Now, Mia, which dress have you decided to wear in the end – the pink one or the orange one?" I asked in an effort to side track my daughter.

And thankfully that was enough to get her started on the merits of each of the dresses she was considering wearing, and forget about dropping in on her brother for the time being.

xXx

It wasn't until the evening before the ball that Christian finally confirmed that he was coming, and that Anastasia was definitely coming with him too.

"He's cutting it a bit fine – it's a good job I know where to get the best masks from," Mia grumbled. "He said if I picked them out for him, Taylor would collect them sometime on Saturday, because he'll be over here to do some sort of security check or something. He's opted for plain black for himself, but he wants three in different colors for Anastasia to choose from, because she hasn't decided which dress she's going to wear yet. All sounds a bit last minute to me. I wonder if he forgot to ask her or something. I hope he's not getting cold feet about Anastasia, because I really like her. Or perhaps she's gone off him…"

"I'm sure it's nothing like that, Mia. Don't go looking for problems where none exist."

All the same I had to confess I had been worried. Christian always likes to have every last little detail under control and he is normally very organized and efficient. So this sudden last minute arrangement was not like him at all, and I too had secretly been worried that something had occurred between him and Anastasia. Sadly, I knew better than to hope that if that was the case that he would confide in me. However, I do believe that in John Flynn, he has finally found someone that he trusts with his deepest anxieties, so hopefully he would turn to him if he was having issues of some kind.

On the face of things, it would seem unlikely that Christian would hit it off with Dr. Flynn, who is British and very different from all his previous counselors. But he has been seeing him now for about two years, which is by far the longest time he has ever stuck with any doctor or therapist or counselor.

I'd heard about John Flynn through my medical connections, when he first set up his practice here in Seattle, so I knew he was very highly regarded, with a reputation for taking on the most difficult and challenging cases. That was why I suggested him to Christian when he stopped seeing his previous therapist. He had declared that one to be worse than useless because he suggested hypnotherapy, which my son apparently considered to be nothing more than a waste of his precious time.

But I knew that Christian needed to have some sort of an outlet for venting his inner turmoil and frustrations. I've always fervently wished he felt able to confide in me, or his father, but he has never been able to do that. I think he feels much more comfortable with a third party, someone who is not personally involved, and I have to respect that.

So Christian was one of John Flynn's first patients in Seattle. They just seemed to hit it off and have gone on to build up a very relaxed rapport, from what I can glean from my son. I've met John Flynn a couple of times, and I like him. He seems very down to earth, and not fazed by Christian's unconventional start in life, or his immense wealth, which is a good thing. Not that he discussed my son with me in any way, because of course that would be unethical without Christian's consent. This was just the impression I got of him.

So I was pleased when Christian suggested last week that Dr. Flynn be invited to buy a ticket to our charity event. It proves that Christian thinks very highly of him, which is high praise indeed, considering that he has deemed every previous therapist as an idiot or a time waster. The only other people he ever suggests we invite are business connections that might prove useful to him, but that equally might prove useful to us in supporting Coping Together. Most of these people are only too willing to have the opportunity to seek my son's patronage and do business with him.

When Carrick had an early morning phone call from Christian, I wondered what on earth it could be about.

"Christian's just told me that Taylor's recommended he order some extra security for tonight. So that means there will be some new men coming over to do some checks before he and Anastasia arrive, and there will also be extra men hanging around this evening as well. He says they've been given orders to be very discreet and not get in the way, so it shouldn't be a problem," he explained.

"Extra security? But why? What's happened to make Taylor concerned enough to call in reinforcements?" I worried.

"I don't know, Christian didn't elaborate."

"Well why didn't you ask him, for goodness sake, Cary!"

"I did, but you know how Christian can be - it's like getting blood out of a stone with him. He said not to worry, that Taylor is just being over cautious. Maybe Christian's ordering extra security because of Anastasia, which is possibly a wise precaution. A young man in his position can't afford to be complacent, not with the threat of kidnappers and the like out there."

"Maybe. I suppose being in a relationship, being close to someone is all very new to him, so possibly he's being very protective of Ana, and Taylor is just responding to that."

I have the greatest respect for Taylor; I am very thankful that he is always there in the background, looking out for my son. So if he is recommending that security be stepped up, then I am happy to go along with whatever that entails. I couldn't help feeling uneasy though - I hated the thought that someone might wish my son and his new girlfriend harm.

xXx

"Are they here yet?"

My mother peered at the crowds of people thronging the marquee. There were approximately three hundred and fifty guests, so it wasn't surprising that she hadn't seen Christian and Anastasia yet.

"I'm not sure, to be honest, Mom. It's hard to see when there are so many people around. But we'll all be sitting together for dinner, so you'll see them both then," I assured her.

"And he's definitely bringing a _girl_ along for us to meet?Because I've always suspected Christian batted for the other side, if you know what I mean," my father asked in a loud whisper, as he raised his eyebrows at me knowingly.

"Yes, it's definitely a girl he's bringing tonight, Dad. You'll see for yourself soon enough." _They'd better darn well turn up now or my father will think I'm delusional. _

Then Mia came hurtling over. She had opted for the pale pink dress in the end, and it suited her very well – my daughter looked beautiful, and I was very proud of her. I think her pink filigree face mask, with its huge plume of long feathers was the most elaborate one I had seen, but it suited her and she could certainly carry it off.

"Hi Gran, hi Gramps, lovely to see you both," Mia hugged and kissed my parents. "Wow, you both look totally amazing in those bronze masks."

"Aw, stop with all the flattery. My darling granddaughter, you're a sight for sore eyes," my father said affectionately, as he returned her hug. They have a very special bond between them, and as with all the men in our family, Mia can twist him round her little finger.

"Mom, I've seen them, Christian and Anastasia are here!" Mia was literally bouncing up and down on the spot with glee, as she clapped her hands together in delight. "And you should have seen Lily's face when I took Ana over to meet all my friends. She looks absolutely stunning, and Lily couldn't help herself, she had to be cutting and snide and make some comment about Christian being gay. It's just pure jealousy of course, so I soon put her straight. Then Christian whisked Ana off to circulate and mingle. I think he wants to show her off to everyone. It's just the sweetest thing to see them together, and he's so loved up that he won't let her out of his sight. Of course he looks divinely handsome, as usual, so I suppose it's no wonder my girlfriends all swoon over him the way they do. "

Naturally, I was relieved to learn that they were both here, but then as hostess, I had to disappear to make sure the catering arrangements were going to plan, so I hurried off. Carrick was also busy, checking in with the Master of Ceremonies about all the last final details of the evenings proceedings.

So I didn't actually get to see Christian and Anastasia until I'd sat myself down at our table in preparation for dinner being served. When I finally saw the young couple making their way over to our table, my heart swelled with joy to see them holding hands and looking simply adorable together.

Ana looked stunning in a gorgeous silver satin gown that really suited her, and showed off her enviably slim figure. It looked to be a very expensive creation, so I imagine that Christian had probably bought it for her, and I was pleased about that. I'd been rather worried that Ana might feel overwhelmed this evening, bearing in mind that only a few short weeks ago she was just a student, used to managing on a pretty tight budget, I imagine. Now she was being swept off her feet by Christian, but as he can be very generous and thoughtful when he chooses, I was reassured that it appeared he'd tried his best to make sure she would not feel out of place tonight. She was also wearing some very beautiful diamond drop earrings, and by the way they twinkled and sparkled as they caught the light, they were undoubtedly the real thing. Another present from Christian, perhaps? _Diamonds are forever – that's a good sign, isn't it?_

Her pretty blue eyes looked enormous, highlighted as they were by her silver mask, but I could see that she looked rather nervous, so I did my best to put her at ease and make her feel welcome. She probably had no idea quite how immensely thrilled and excited we all were to see her here tonight, or what a huge milestone this was for Christian, to be seen out in public with his girlfriend. _And he's actually holding her hand!_

"Ana, how delightful to see you again! And looking so beautiful, too."

"Mother," Christian said, as he kissed me on both cheeks. Not a hint of a hug or anything like that though. I just wished he could be more relaxed with me. I've always felt he's holding back from me, afraid to let his guard down, even now after all these years.

"Oh, Christian, so formal!"

Of course my parents had spotted Christian with Ana and were hastily making their way over.

"Oh my, don't they just make a _lovely_ couple," my mother whispered loudly to me, already starting to get very emotional, as she made a beeline for her grandson.

"Christian, it's wonderful to see you, and looking so debonair and handsome too. Come, give your old grandmother a kiss hello," she insisted, and Christian dutifully complied. "And now, tell me who this beautiful young lady is."

"Grandmother, Grandfather, may I introduce Anastasia Steele?"

"Oh, he's finally found someone, how wonderful and so pretty! Well, I do hope you make an honest man of him," my mother gushed, as she shook Ana's hand and then kept hold of it. I could see Christian cringing, and Ana blushing as she gently retrieved her hand.

"Mother, don't embarrass Ana," I warned her, as I smiled reassuringly at the poor girl. She smiled back at me, and I liked her even more for her gracious attitude to the old folk. I just had the most special feeling about this sweet young girl. Even though we haven't known her that long, there's something about her that convinces me she's perfect for Christian.

"Ignore the silly old coot, m'dear. She thinks because she's so old, she has a God-given right to say whatever nonsense pops into that woolly head of hers," my father stated, as he too shook Ana's hand enthusiastically, and stared at her with a big smile on his face.

Then the heat was taken off the poor girl as Mia introduced her date to us all, a young man called Sean that we hadn't met before. She'd been determined that she was going to have an escort tonight, I think to prove some sort of a point to her friends, maybe even a bet. I'm not sure Sean actually had any say in the matter to be honest, but he seemed a nice enough boy. I wasn't concerned that it was anything serious, although Christian stared intently at him in apparent effort to work out whether this boy was a suitable escort for his sister.

Christian's always been very protective of Mia, although quite frankly I think she is probably more than capable of looking after herself these days. So I could imagine him being super protective of Anastasia, and I decided that Carrick was probably right; concern for her safety was most likely the reason behind the increased security he'd ordered for tonight.

I'd already noticed Taylor and three other men lurking around, because they were not wearing masks. As they were keeping in the background, it wasn't too obvious unless you were actively looking for them. Some of the other staff weren't masked either, so I think anyone not in the know would simply assume they were extra members of our staff for tonight.

As everyone settled in their places at the table, Carrick appeared on stage to open the proceedings. He's a very good public speaker, as you would naturally expect from a lawyer used to holding his own in court. Mia had gotten him a gold Punchinello mask with a long beak like nose to it – I think that was her idea of a joke, but he took it all in good heart, and still managed to look distinguished and handsome.

He gave his usual speech encouraging everyone to dig deep to support Coping Together. All he ever says is that it is a cause close to both our hearts. Our friends understand that this is a reference to our experiences with Christian. Other people probably assume he's referring to issues relating to both our jobs – either way, it is a very worthwhile cause and we really appreciate everyone's generosity. Every year to date we have increased the money raised, despite difficult times with the recession. Of course this is when the charity needs supporting more than ever.

Once he'd handed over proceedings to the MC, Carrick came and joined us at the table. He too was clearly delighted to see Anastasia, and greeted her warmly by kissing her on both cheeks, the ultimate seal of approval from my husband, although I think it took her by surprise. Not many people get kissed on both cheeks by him.

The evening really got going then, as Mia enthusiastically volunteered to be our table head. Ana just quietly watched everything going on around her, as she sat between my father and Christian, who was very solicitous in his care of her.

He quickly stepped in as Ana was caught out when the MC asked for donations for the draw later, and quietly handed her a hundred dollar bill. She looked mortified as she whispered to him, but he just calmly passed her his pen to write her name on the note.

I noticed he also helped and guided her through all the courses of the meal. We have to put on this kind of fancy display to impress all our influential benefactors, but no doubt all the various cutlery and glasses can seem confusing when you're not used to them, so I was pleased to see him being caring and courteous to his date in this way.

They whispered and gazed at each other throughout the meal in such a sweet way, and I know my mother noticed this too, as she nodded her head at them and winked at me. It didn't stop her being her usual vociferous self though – she and my father take great delight in scoring points off each other. I think my mother won that evening, as she was on top form. Lord alone what Ana made of it all, but that's families for you – full of quirky and odd behaviors that you just have to get used to.

Christian got into quite a heated discussion with Lance, my friend Janine's husband, who were sat at our table to make up the numbers as we were missing Elliot and Kate. It was quite unusual to see him so animated, so it must have been about something he's involved with at work, but I couldn't hear all the details.

However, while Christian was engrossed in his discussion with Lance, Mia got Ana to agree to take part in the First Dance auction which was being held a little later on. I strongly suspected Ana hadn't a clue what she'd agreed to, and I just hoped Christian would be fine about it - I had no idea how he would react to his precious girlfriend being auctioned off to the highest bidder. If Elliot had been here, he'd find the idea of his girlfriend being auctioned off a huge joke of course, but with Christian you just never know.

Anyhow, Mia was doing a good job of looking after Ana, as she helpfully showed her the way to the ladies powder room, saving Christian the bother, although he looked anxious until she returned to sit next to him again, when he quickly took her hand in his again. It's like he needs to have some contact with her all the time. _So sweet._

We were very lucky again this year with the wonderful auction prizes that had been donated. It's always such a good way to raise funds, with people getting something back in return for donating their money. We always donate a week's stay at our place in Montana, and Christian does the same with his place in Aspen.

We were all aware that Ana had only just started her first job, and that although she came from a decent family, they were certainly not affluent, from what we'd gathered. So you can imagine how shocked we all were when bizarrely, out of the blue, she suddenly bid twenty four thousand dollars for the week at Christian's place in Aspen. She surely didn't have those kinds of funds to splurge unnecessarily, and I'm sure Christian would happily have taken her there anyway, without her having to bid for it.

He certainly looked none too pleased at her actions, although he managed to put a brave face on it, as he smiled and whispered something to her. I think maybe Ana had acted on impulse, and I just hoped it wasn't a misguided gesture on her part to try and keep up with everyone else, because we certainly didn't expect that. I looked at Carrick, and saw the same thought was going through his mind too.

"Don't worry. I'll have a quiet word with Ana later. I don't want her to think she has to impress us in any way," he whispered to me.

"Okay, but be very tactful about it won't you darling? I don't want her feelings to be hurt," I murmured back.

"Trust me, I'll be at my most sensitive. It really is very sweet of Anastasia to want to contribute though, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. I don't think Christian is too impressed though. I hope it doesn't cause any upset between them. I just want things to run smoothly between them, you know?"

"I'm sure everything will be fine. What's he going to do – punish her somehow just for donating to charity? I don't think so, Grace. You worry too much."

Looking over at the young couple now, I decided Carrick was right. I do worry too much about my son and his complicated nature. He was happily sitting with his arm draped over Ana's shoulders, gently stroking her back, and I was very happy indeed to see him being so openly affectionate towards her, in a way that I have never seen him be with anyone before.

Then it was time for the First Dance Auction.

I think it was nerves maybe, but Ana got a fit of the giggles as Mia told her it was time for them to get up on stage. At least she didn't seem too worried about the proceedings anyhow.

It was obvious that Christian was very reluctant for his girl to disappear, even for a short time. Before he let her go, he murmured something in her ear, and then gently nuzzled her neck. Ana responded by softly kissing his mouth and gazing into his eyes, as Christian smiled at her. A genuine, happy smile. _My son looks happy!_

"That's the look of love if ever I saw it!" My mother leaned over to whisper urgently in my ear, beaming from ear to ear in delight at seeing her normally very reticent, very restrained grandson acting this way.

"I know! Don't they look just adorable together? He simply can't take his eyes off her," I replied delightedly. Tonight, for the first time, my son actually looked like the carefree twenty-something young man he should be. _Christian in love. Yes!_

"Quite a turn up for the books. Not sure I'd have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes," Carrick whispered to me, and even the cynical lawyer was smiling broadly as he gazed affectionately at the young couple.

Of course the MC went well over the top with his sales pitch for the young ladies who had volunteered to take part in the auction – but that's all part of the fun.

Christian joined the other men gathered round the stage, as the first two young women were auctioned off. He seemed pretty relaxed about it all, while Anastasia looked highly embarrassed, but at least she had Mia by her side for moral support. I was quite certain that when the time came, my son would be placing a very high bid to ensure that he would be dancing the first dance with his girl.

When Ana's turn came to be auctioned off, the MC hadn't even finished his introduction of her, before Christian immediately placed a bid of ten thousand dollars, which was at least twice what the two previous girls had gone for. He meant business alright, and we all assumed that was it, a done deal, that no one would be outbidding him. So there were gasps from the crowd when a counter bid was called out.

"Fifteen."

It was a loud, deep voice that sounded vaguely familiar but that I couldn't quite place, as I looked over at the tall gentleman who had placed the bid.

But clearly Christian knew who it was, and thankfully he seemed amused rather than upset, as I might have expected. He just stood there scratching his chin and smiling wryly, as the other man nodded to him.

"Twenty." Christian gave a lazy smile as he upped the stakes.

"Twenty five." The mysterious man upped his bid again, causing more gasps from the crowd.

"One hundred thousand dollars," Christian responded loudly and clearly. _Enough is enough - don't mess with me_, he seemed to be saying to the other man.

There were loud gasps from the crowd, and in her excitement Mia was actually jumping up and down on the stage next to Ana. I was more concerned about the state of my son's mind, rather than the money.

After all, as Carrick proudly informed me recently, our son is a billionaire, one of the youngest on the Forbes list, along with Mark Zuckerberg, the Facebook founder who is about the same age as Christian, and Bill Gates the founder of Microsoft, who is of course much older. Interestingly enough, it turns out they both dropped out of Harvard too, just like Christian. Make of that what you will – I guess it shows you don't need to graduate to prove you're a financial genius.

So, as a billionaire, I imagine one hundred thousand dollars is probably quite a paltry sum of money to Christian. Pocket money, even. But by the look of total shock on Ana's face, it was clearly a huge sum of money to her.

The other mystery bidder shook his head and bowed out graciously. I imagine he was probably wealthy, but not in the same league as Christian. Not many people are.

Then, without further delay, Christian collected Ana from the stage, and quickly led her away from the crowds to beat a hasty exit from the marquee. It was a lovely evening, so I imagined that maybe he was going to show her the view – and possibly spend some time kissing and cuddling with her too, which I thoroughly approved off. Clearly, he just wanted her all to himself, but I noticed that Taylor and the other security men followed them at a discreet distance. I sighed, as I realized that was the price he paid for being so rich – the lack of privacy.

I wondered to myself how Ana was going to cope with that side of things – the body guards, the intrusive paparazzi, as well as the gossip pages, all no doubt hungry for a juicy story about my son falling for her, once word got out. It made me sad, to be honest. Why couldn't people just mind their own business and leave them alone in these fragile early days of their new found romance? Maybe that was the reason behind Christian's increasing their security – to prevent anyone trying to get some sort of an exclusive picture or story about Ana. The last thing he'd want would be for her to be scared off by nosy, invasive reporters.

I'm just thankful that Taylor is so good at his job, and always so meticulous and thorough. He'd even insisted on checking out Christian's old bedroom earlier in the day, although I couldn't see why he deemed that necessary. Christian hasn't used that room in years, although I've always told him that this is still his home, and that his room will always be there for him should he ever need it. I've kept it just how it was when he left to go to Harvard, and I sometimes go in there to sit and think about those years when he lived at home.

Christian refuses point blank to ever discuss his birth mother, and always stubbornly refers to her as the 'crack whore', no matter how hard we've tried in the past to get him to see that she did love him very much indeed, and that she was herself a victim of circumstance. But despite all his protestations of disinterest, he always kept the small black and white photo he had of her, tucked in the corner of his pin board. We offered to have it restored and enlarged for him, but he said that wasn't necessary, so we didn't touch it. The photo is still there in his room, I've never moved it or put it away. He didn't take it with him when he moved out, and I wondered if he saw it as making a break with his past when he left it behind. I'm pleased he never destroyed it though, as I'm sure he would eventually regret it one day if he had.

I also have a box that contains the very few possessions that he had when we adopted him – his precious blankie, and his toy cars, along with the few things that were left of his birth mother's. Nothing of financial value of course, because she'd sold everything she had to fund her drug habit, but there were some books and a diary. I've never read the diary, as it would seem a gross invasion of Ella's privacy somehow, but I think as her son, Christian has the right to read it if he chose to. Up to now, there has never been a time that I felt was right to offer these things to him, but I hope that maybe one day, he will be in a better place, where he can be more accepting and think about his birth mother in a less judgmental way, and so be able to look through that box with me.

xXx

Sean didn't manage to win Mia in the First Dance auction – I think it was rather out of his financial league, poor boy. But Mia didn't seem too worried about it, probably because she was too excited at being won by a tall, handsome stranger.

"Isn't he a dish?" she mouthed at me, as she nodded towards her new partner, and I smiled my agreement back at her.

Then I was taken by surprise when my friend Elena came up and greeted me. I didn't recognize her at first, because she was wearing an unusual gold mask that concealed her trademark platinum blonde bob. Of course she looked her usual extremely elegant and beautiful self, in an exquisite black velvet gown. She always wears black, and it really suits her. Maybe I should have gone for something more classic like her, rather than the mint green gown I opted for in the end, on Mia's insistence. But black always seems aging on me, and as Elena looks far younger than her actual age, I always feel rather frumpy next to her. She is so immaculately groomed in every way, although Carrick insists I have nothing to worry about.

"I think Elena always looks as hard as nails. All that bleached blonde hair and red talons for nails. Nothing natural about her at all," is his considered opinion.

"Grace, darling, you've really excelled yourself this year. Everything is just fabulous, but then I wouldn't expect anything less from you and Carrick," she enthused, as we pecked each other on the cheek in our normal manner.

"Elena my dear, how are you? I didn't think you were coming this evening, but I'm glad you changed your mind. It's good to see you, and thank you so much for the donation of the Esclava voucher for the auction. It's very generous of you and much appreciated."

I hadn't actually spoken to Elena for a while, not since she'd made some rather harsh comments about Christian's new girlfriend the last time she'd phoned me, which I felt were rather uncalled for. To be honest, I couldn't really see what business it was of hers, but for some reason, she's always taken quite an interest in Christian, much more so than in my other two children.

I think maybe it's because I confided in her about my fears for Christian when he was going through that particularly difficult spell, when he was about fifteen or sixteen. I was so worried that he was secretly drinking, and that he might even start taking drugs. At the time, she was a friendly shoulder to cry on, although to be honest we didn't really have that much in common. I think we became friends because I felt sorry for her, as I could see that she was trapped in a loveless marriage. Her husband treated her purely as a trophy wife, and she never had children, so I think she was probably lonely. We'd gotten to know each other through mutual acquaintances, as often happens.

These days, I gather Christian has got involved in some sort of business venture with Elena, something to do with her chain of beauty salons. I think he's just provided some financial backing, but he's never really elaborated about it. I do know that he likes to dabble in all sorts of new business ventures that he sees potential in, so I guess that's what he was doing in backing her salons. Maybe there's more money to be made in the beauty industry than I realized, especially as Elena only caters for the top end, exclusive clientele. As a very busy doctor with all my onerous responsibilities at the hospital, it's certainly not my area of expertise, and I don't have the time to indulge in many of the treatments she offers – I just have my hair done regularly, and the occasional manicure.

"Oh it was my pleasure to donate the voucher, it's such a worthwhile cause, after all," she smiled at me. "I see Christian is still infatuated with this young girl, making that outrageous bid at the First Dance Auction to win her."

I felt my hackles rise at her tone.

"I think it's much more than an infatuation, actually. I think he's in love, and it's pretty serious between them. I for one am delighted to see the change Anastasia has brought about in Christian. I've never seen him like this, _ever_."

"Oh don't get me wrong, Grace, I'm thrilled to see him so happy too. But aren't you just a little concerned?"

"What do you mean? Concerned about what?"

"Well, if things don't work out? What if Anastasia can't cope with a challenging man like Christian? She's just a young, immature girl, fresh from college, swept of her feet by a very rich, very handsome young man pursuing her. And he seems to have impulsively jumped straight in the deep end, with what is after all his very first relationship. But once she realizes that he moves in very different circles to those she's more used to, she might not be able to cope, especially with his undeniably complex personality. I'm just worried he'll get terribly hurt if she breaks things off with him again."

"Again? What do you mean, again?" What did Elena know that I didn't?

"Oh, didn't you know? Didn't Christian tell you? Anastasia broke things off with him last weekend, and the poor boy was totally devastated. Now I think he's made her all sorts of unrealistic promises just to win her back, so that they can try again."

Of course, that would explain why we hadn't been able to get hold of Christian all week, and why he didn't confirm to us that Ana was coming to the ball right up until last night. Now I felt really terrible for not trying harder to get in contact with him. I wondered why they had broken up? My poor boy, why hadn't he told us what he was going through so we could support him? He must have been heartbroken, and yet he still didn't turn to us to support him. This was just typical of him though. But how come Elena knew about it when we didn't?

"How do you know all this?" I asked her, puzzled.

"Oh it just so happened that we had business meeting arranged last week, at the same time as he was going through this. I could tell he was very upset about something, and when I asked him what the matter was, he confided in me. Much as you confided your woes to me about Christian all those years ago. I guess I must be a good listener. Look, please don't mention to Christian that I've told you about any this, not if he hasn't already mentioned it to you himself. I'd hate him to think I'd broken his confidence, but it's probably best that you're aware of what happened."

"Can I ask, why did Ana break up with him? Do you know the reason?"

"I think she finds him, his needs, very demanding, and it all got too much for her. You know he followed her all the way to Georgia, flew out there in his private jet, even though she specifically told him she needed some space, some time away from him to think things through?"

I recalled how Ana had been talking about making a visit to her mother in Georgia when Christian had brought her to dinner at our place that first time, and how he had seemed upset about it, so what Elena was telling me did ring true.

Poor Christian, it seemed he simply couldn't bear to be without his Anastasia. You could see it by the way he was constantly by her side all evening, how he couldn't take his eyes off her. He really was head over heels in love, and I suppose I could see how Ana might feel rather overwhelmed. My son can very driven and determined to get what he wants at any cost, which of course is why his company is so successful. He just needed to remember that Anastasia was not a business acquisition that he can steam roller through in his usual intense way. He needed to learn about the more subtle aspects of a relationship, and I can't argue that he no doubt has a lot of catching up to do in that area. But it was very obvious that Ana was deeply in love with him too – any fool could see that. They just need to learn to compromise and adjust to each other.

"But they seem to have made up again now, and they look very happy together. So hopefully they have managed to work things out," I insisted, upset that Elena had rained on my parade. I'd been so thrilled to see them together, so happy that my son had a lovely girlfriend, but was I closing my eyes to the reality of the situation? I couldn't argue that Christian was indeed a very difficult young man, so was it fair of me to expect Anastasia to be the answer to all our prayers and magically solve all his problems overnight?

"Yes, they seem to have papered over the cracks for now at least. Don't get me wrong, Grace. Just like you, I'd love to see Christian happy in a close, loving relationship. But it's no good looking at things through rose colored spectacles is it? Maybe being outside the immediate family means I can see things a little more clearly. I'm not being swept along by the euphoria of discovering that Christian isn't gay, because I've always known that he wasn't."

"How? How could you possibly have known that he wasn't gay?"

It wasn't just me who'd made that assumption. Carrick, Elliot, Mia and even my father had all reached the same conclusion that Christian was most probably gay. Why else had he never brought a girl home, or even been seen with one? At the time, it was a logical assumption.

"I don't know, just call it a sixth sense about these things if you will," Elena insisted. "But I've always known that Christian was definitely straight and not interested in guys."

I didn't really believe her, to be honest. It's easy enough to claim that now, seeing him with his girlfriend, and quite frankly, I was getting rather sick of her insinuation that she knew my son better than I did. Just who did Elena think she was?

Luckily, just as I could feel my temper beginning to rise and I might have said something I would regret later, my dear husband appeared at my side to collect me, because the first dance was about to be announced and we needed to make our way over to the dance floor.

"That _woman_…" I muttered to Carrick.

"What? What's the matter?" he asked, concerned.

"Never mind. I'll tell you about it later, Cary. "

My good humor was restored by seeing Christian grinning happily as he led Anastasia onto the dance floor, having returned just in time from wherever they had snuck off to.

We all started dancing the first dance as the band struck up ' I've got you under my skin', and as I glanced over at the young couple dancing together beautifully, smiling and whispering together in their own private little world, I pushed my annoyance with Elena to the back of my mind.

All young couples inevitably have their ups and downs, but looking at them now, there was absolutely no doubt in my mind that they looked happier than ever. I decided that Elena was probably just one of those pessimistic people who always cast doubts and looked for problems. And anyway, whatever went on between Christian and Anastasia was really none of her goddamn business.

When the dance ended, the identity of the mysterious man who had bid against Christian was revealed, as I recognized John Flynn cutting in and asking for the second dance. So it seemed he knew all about Ana, which I could only think was a good thing, because it surely meant that Christian had confided in him and hopefully turned to him for support when they had broken up last week. In any case, Christian didn't seem to have a problem with letting John dance with her, although he watched them from the sidelines like a hawk of course, and was there to reclaim her the second the music finished.

Carrick and I stood on the sidelines to watch, fascinated because we've never seen our son so eager to dance and take part in the festivities before. Normally, he dutifully completes just one dance with me, his Grandmother and his sister before he makes his escape. Tonight, he was obviously relaxed and actually enjoying himself. I couldn't imagine where he learnt to dance that well, unless maybe he'd had lessons at college, but there was no doubt that he was a very good dancer indeed, as he effortlessly swept Ana around the floor.

"Good evening, Dr. Trevelyan, Mr. Grey. Thank you for inviting me this evening."

I turned round to see Dr. Flynn, as he proffered his hand.

"Please, it's Carrick and Grace," my husband insisted, as the two men shook hands.

"It's a pleasure to see you here tonight. Is your wife here?" I inquired thinking she probably wouldn't know many people, so perhaps I should seek her out.

"No, unfortunately she couldn't get a babysitter for our boys at short notice. Rhian won't leave them with anyone she doesn't know, she's very protective," he explained.

"That's a shame, but I quite understand how she feels. I was just the same with our kids, wasn't I, Carrick?"

"Yes, you most certainly were, darling. Well, hopefully next time you'll have a bit more notice to organize a sitter, Dr. Flynn, because we'd certainly love to meet your wife."

"That's very kind of you. And please, it's John."

All three of us were stood on the edge of the dance floor, watching Christian and Ana dancing together.

"It's a delight to see them, isn't it?" John commented, smiling as he nodded towards the young couple – Christian was expertly spinning Ana around, and she was laughing up at him.

"It most certainly is. We've never seen him like this before, and it's wonderful to see him looking so…_happy…_and _normal_, just like a young man in his twenties with his whole future ahead of him ought to be. He's always seemed so old before his time, continually alone and just concentrating on his work."

"Yes, but… I just hope we aren't expecting too much. From Anastasia, I mean. Christian can be so difficult, can't he?" The doubts that Elena had put in my mind had resurfaced.

"Between you and me, I think Anastasia is the best thing that could have happened to him," John winked at us.

"Really? You truly think so?"

I couldn't hide the note of hope and longing in my voice. If, as I suspected, John had been supporting Christian during his break up with Ana, and now his opinion was so positive about them, surely that was a very good sign? I knew I couldn't ask him anything about it, but I took his words as a hint that things had turned out for the best between them.

" I've been looking forward to meeting Anastasia for myself, and I have to say now that I've met her, in my opinion she is a total delight, and just perfect for Christian," he replied with a big smile.

"Oh thank you, you don't know what that means to us," I gushed, and then I just couldn't help myself, I gave the poor man a hug and kissed his cheek. He looked surprised, but at least he didn't seem offended, so perhaps he was not as reserved as some British people I've met.

Carrick was also rather taken aback by my unusually exuberant display, but of course he had no idea what Elena had told me earlier. I decided I would fill him in later, because I really didn't want to talk about that any more just now. If the good Doctor Flynn thought everything was going well, that was good enough for me.

So Cary and I danced a few more dances together.

"I haven't had a chance to speak to Ana about her auction bid yet, but I can't see her or Christian at the moment," he said as he glanced around the dance floor.

"Perhaps they've escaped for a while. Perhaps they wanted to be…_alone_, if you catch my drift," I suggested with a smile. "You remember those days, don't you?"

"I most certainly do, and I still like stealing a kiss or two from my lovely wife," he teased as he gave me a quick kiss. "Ah, there they are. Won't be long."

With that, he headed off towards Christian and Ana who had just reappeared, and after a few words with them, he was dancing with his son's girlfriend to 'Come Fly with Me'. I just hoped he wouldn't say anything that would rock their very precarious boat, especially as he was unaware that they had only just reconciled after breaking up.

I needn't have worried. When he came back, he was singing Ana's praises.

"Ana said she'd come into some money she didn't need and that she really wanted to donate it to Coping Together, because Christian had told her some things about his past. Grace, he's actually opening up to her; he's talking about what happened to him with her. He's _never_ done that before, has he? This really is a huge step forward for him, don't you think? Anastasia is having such a positive and beneficial effect on him, so I really think we must do everything in our power to support them and encourage this relationship. She is so good for him."

"I couldn't agree more, Cary. No one is happier than I am about this romance, so we must treasure Ana and make her part of our family."

For the first time in many years, Christian stayed for the firework display – he is normally long gone by the time they start. But this year, he stood and watched them as he cuddled up very closely with Ana, every now and again leaning down to kiss her. _Yes, head over heels in love, the pair of them._ As everyone had now been allowed to remove their masks, I could see their expressions more clearly, and they were both like young children, excitedly watching the impressive display.

A little while after the display had finished, they sought us out to say their farewells.

"Please do come again, Anastasia, it's been lovely having you here," I told her warmly, as I kissed them both goodbye, and hugged the dear girl. _My son's salvation?_

"Yes, my dear, you are always very welcome, anytime," Carrick echoed my sentiments as he also kissed and hugged her.

I had to admit they both looked rather bemused at our effusive display, but we didn't care, although it was a good job my parents had left earlier, or else no doubt they too would have been joining in.

"Make sure you include us next time you have Christian and his young lady over to dinner, won't you? We didn't get much of a chance to talk to them tonight," my father insisted when they left.

I didn't like to point out that he had actually talked to Ana for a quite a considerable time at dinner this evening, when he'd been sat next to her. I'd overheard him telling her all about the origins of the Trevelyan family name, and how his family originated from Cornwall in the south west of England. I think he's always been rather disappointed that none of my children have chosen to use the old Cornish part of our name, preferring instead to stick with the much simpler Grey. I can't say that I blame them – Trevelyan-Grey is rather long winded.

"They are such a sweet, lovely young couple," my mother sighed happily as they left. "And they would make such beautiful babies together too."

I was certainly very glad they weren't around to hear that last remark of hers, because I'm sure Ana would have blushed right to the very roots of her hair, even if I did secretly agree with my mother. God willing, they would indeed make very beautiful babies together, if they should ever progress to that stage in their relationship sometime in the distant future.

But of course we were getting way ahead of ourselves. All I could hope at the moment was that the course of true love would run a little more smoothly for them, now that they seemed to have reconciled whatever their differences had been about. It still rankled with me that I had learnt about their difficulties from Elena. I'm Christian's mother, for goodness sake, and he should have felt able to confide in me, shouldn't he? But it made me all the more determined to befriend Ana, to be as supportive of her as possible, especially as her own mother lived so far away. I felt sure that she was definitely the key to getting closer to Christian.

As the Coping Together Masked Ball finally came to its conclusion, Carrick and I agreed that this year had without doubt been the best event we had ever hosted, and a very large part of that was due in no small part to a certain young lady who was having such a remarkable effect on our son.


	5. Chapter 5 The Guardian Angel

**Doctor Grace Trevelyan-Grey Meets Anastasia Steele**

**Chapter 5**

**THE GUARDIAN ****ANGEL**

I was sitting in my office at the hospital, just finishing up my paperwork following my pediatric outpatient clinic before heading on home, when I was surprised to look up and see Carrick standing in the doorway.

"Hello, darling, this is a surprise. What brings you here?"

My husband rarely comes to my office, so this was a highly unusual event, and I felt an immediate niggle of worry, especially when I saw how serious he was looking.

"I wanted to catch you before you left for home. Grace, there's something you need to know, and I didn't want to tell you over the phone."

I got up and went over to him, worried by his words.

"What on earth is the matter, Carrick? You're scaring me now."

He looked into my face, gripped my shoulders and took a deep breath.

"There's no easy way to say this, my love. I've just had a call from Andrea, Christian's PA. It seems that he flew down to Portland with his assistant Ros today in his helicopter, and…"

Carrick's voice faltered and I could see that he was struggling to maintain his composure.

"What? What's happened to Christian..." my voice dropped to a horrified whisper, as my hand shot to my mouth.

"He was due back by three this afternoon at the latest, according to his flight plan. It's now nearly six, and there's no sign of him. It seems his helicopter has gone missing."

"Missing? But they don't know for sure that he's actually crashed? Maybe he's just landed somewhere?"

"Yes, that's possible, so the search and rescue teams are out looking right now, but it'll be getting dark shortly, so if they don't find him soon…"

"Oh, God, Carrick. Our poor boy…Christian could be dead, he could be lying critically injured somewhere….what if they don't find him…"

Carrick caught me as I sagged and nearly collapsed, a huge sob escaping from me as I burst into tears.

"Hush, now Grace, we don't know for sure it's that bad. There's still hope. As you say, he might just have landed somewhere remote and hasn't got a signal for his cell. It might just be that simple."

"Yes, of course you're right. I'm sorry, I must pull myself together," I said, as I took a Kleenex from my purse, wiped my eyes, and blew my nose. Going to pieces was not going to help anyone, was it?

"The thing is…Andrea says the press has already gotten hold of the story somehow, and so they're being hounded for details. They're doing their best to hold them off, but she says it's only a matter of time before the news breaks on TV. She thinks it would be best if we told the rest of the family before that happens."

"Yes, of course, that makes a lot of sense. I'm fine now, really, so let's get organized. You call Elliot, and I'll call Mia. And Anastasia, of course! What about Ana, she mustn't find out about this from the news, must she?"

"Exactly. But we don't have her cell number, and she'll have left work by now, so I'm not sure how to get hold of her."

"Elliot. When you speak to him, he'll know how to make contact with her, because Kate is her best friend."

And so we rallied the family round, deciding it would be best if we congregated together in one place, where it would be easier to keep everyone in the picture regarding the latest information, although we persuaded my parents not to make the journey into town, promising to let them know the moment we had any news or updates.

Carrick managed to contact Taylor, who returned immediately from a family crisis concerning his daughter that had called him away earlier in the day – apparently that situation had been happily resolved as it turned out to have been some sort of a false alarm.

It was agreed that it would be best to use Christian's apartment as the central base, with Taylor's office as the communication hub, because of all the specialist communication equipment it apparently had.

Elliot with Kate, and her brother Ethan arrived, bringing Ana with them, along with a friend who was visiting, a young man called José. We collected Mia on our way in, so that was all the family gathered together.

Mia was adamant that Christian would be back safe and well.

"I'd know if something really bad had happened to him, I'd just know. So he will be back, I'm telling you all," she bravely insisted as the hours ticked by and there was still no news.

"Of course, darling," I tried to smile. But a nasty, horrid little voice kept going round in my head. _You're never going to see him again. He's not going to see his twenty eighth birthday. You will never see your son again. Christian is dead. Your beautiful boy has gone. No more birthdays for him._

I tried to ignore that horrid voice, but every time I sat down, it was all I could hear, so I couldn't settle. I just couldn't sit still. Carrick coped by keeping himself busy with Taylor in his office, as they tried to find out from the authorities what the latest situation was. Apparently the last known contact from Christian was when he radioed in to Air Traffic Control to ask for permission to fly close to Mount St Helens, not long after he'd taken off, which was granted. There was no reported volcanic activity that would have caused any problems for the helicopter. After that, nothing more was heard from him, no Mayday, no distress call, nothing. It was a complete mystery.

I wandered in and out of that room and every other room too. Kate, as an aspiring journalist, seemed fascinated to watch events unfurling on the news reports on TV. I couldn't bear to see the banner headline 'Christian Grey Missing' going round and round, so I left her to it.

Apparently Taylor was extremely frustrated at not being able to track either Ros or Christian's cell due to the lack of signal in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest area, where it was likely the helicopter had gone down. I also overheard Taylor explaining to Carrick that he was mystified that there was no tracking signal from the locator device that apparently was fixed to the helicopter. If only that had been emitting a signal as it should have been, then it would have made the job of the search and rescue teams so much easier.

"It could possibly mean one of three things, Mr. Grey," I heard him explaining. "Either it's faulty, or it's missing, or…." Taylor hesitated when he noticed me standing there listening in.

"Or what?" I insisted.

"It could have been totally destroyed as a result of a very high impact crash," he said quietly.

I couldn't bear to even contemplate the implications of what Taylor was saying. The thought of my son's helicopter plunging out of the sky and smashing into tiny pieces….

Another low point was when the authorities announced they were calling off the search for the day because it was too dark to continue. It meant there was no realistic hope of any news until the morning, and I felt the spirits of everyone in the room sink. But no one felt like going home, or going to bed to try to get some sleep.

That Anastasia was in a state of shock became apparent when I saw her shivering and shaking and realized she was freezing cold. She had been unable to do more than shake or nod her head ever since she'd arrived. She'd just sat there, her arms wrapped about herself, gently rocking, lost in her own thoughts.

"I think we need to watch over Ana," I whispered to Mia, thinking it was best to concentrate on doing something positive to try and help where we could. "She's in a terrible state even if she isn't wailing and weeping."

"Come and sit by the fire, my dear," I urged her, while Mia fetched a blanket and put it around the poor girl's shoulders, and Elliot messed around with the fire to get it to turnout some extra heat to try and warm her up.

I think Mia was glad to have something to do. I'd noticed her talking with Kate's brother Ethan several times over the course of the evening. Ever since he'd stepped in at short notice to take her to lunch when Ana had to drop out, Mia hadn't stopped talking about him. She liked him, that much was obvious. And what Mia wants, Mia usually gets. But how he felt about her was less apparent. So I would be watching what developed there with great interest, and at least he seemed like a decent young man.

"I'll make her a nice hot tea," Mrs. Jones offered when she saw us trying to get Ana warm.

She had been a marvel, getting everyone hot drinks, and sandwiches, although no one had much appetite. I understood that she needed to keep busy, to feel useful. I've always really liked her, because I can tell that she genuinely cares about my son, in a kind motherly way, and that she really enjoys looking after him. And watching how concerned she was about Ana, I realized that she was also very fond of her employer's girlfriend. No doubt she too had noticed the change she has brought about in him, and it seemed that she also thoroughly approved of their budding relationship.

The young boy José watched Ana constantly, and I suspected that he was probably rather keen on her. I seemed to recall Kate mentioning something about Ana meeting up with him when they were all over at our place for dinner that time, and how Christian's face had glowered with what was most likely jealousy. But for now, I thought he was just trying to be a supportive friend at a very difficult time for her, because José was by Ana's side in an instant when he saw her break down and finally start sobbing, holding her hand and asking if she wanted to call her parents. Ana just shook her head and clutched his hand tightly. It was obvious that she was completely distraught because of how deeply she cared for my son.

_"This is so unfair!"_ I ranted at the Almighty in my head. _"After everything my darling boy endured as a child, now that he has just begun to come out of his shell, has just discovered the joy of love, this has to happen! Why? What has he ever done to deserve this?"_

Still feeling restless, I went over to the boys as they stood together by the breakfast bar, and darling Elliot gave me a wonderful, comforting big hug, because he is just the kindest, sweetest natured boy. Of course, my eldest son has never had any issues with physical contact or showing affection and it was just the best feeling as he held me tightly. But it was also a bittersweet feeling, because it made me realize that I might never get to achieve my long term goal and ambition to get the chance to enjoy a similar big hug from my younger son.

It has always been my dream that one day Christian would finally feel able to open up, to let his barriers down enough to allow me to hug him properly. All he gives or receives at the moment is a quick peck on the cheek, and a brief touch on his arm. Even better, I've always hoped that maybe one day, unforced and of his own free will, Christian would just come up and hug me.

He used to get hysterically upset if I tried to hug him when he was a little boy, so even though it broke my heart, I learned to hold back and respect his phobias. It was even worse if Carrick ever tried to cuddle him, our poor boy was even more terrified of any kind of physical contact with him. But recently, seeing how much he's changed for the better since he's met Anastasia had finally given me hope. Now that hope was dashed. He was missing. He could very well be dead. The longer things went on, the less likely it was that there would be a happy ending. I was never going to get the chance to hold Christian to me, and now I wondered if perhaps I should have tried harder while I still had the chance. Perhaps we'd fallen into a set pattern and I'd given up trying after being rejected so many times. But as his mother, I should never give up, should I? Perhaps it was my fault for allowing him to stick to his established behaviors. Perhaps I should have been more challenging. Now it looked as though I would never get the chance to try to break through with him again.

It got to be well past eleven, and as midnight approached, I worked out that Christian had been missing for eight hours. He might have been lying in agony somewhere for eight whole hours, as his life slowly drained away. Or he might have been dead for eight whole hours. I tried to work out how long it would be until dawn, when they could send out the rescue teams again, but my mind was too fuzzy and tired to do the math.

I was just wondering if I should suggest that Ana go and lie down and try to get some rest, when I looked up and thought I saw an apparition.

Standing there in the entrance was my son. It took all of about three seconds for me to realize that this was no apparition. By some miracle Christian was right here, large as life, with his shoes and socks in his hands, looking totally bemused.

I didn't hesitate.

I shrieked out his name and went running towards him.

"Christian!"

I didn't hold back. I launched myself at him and fervently hugged and kissed him. My son had just been returned to me from the dead. So there was no question about it. He was going to be hugged and kissed whether he liked it or not.

"Mom?"

"I thought I'd never see you again," I cried emotionally, as I threw my arms around his neck, bracing myself for him to push me away after a couple of seconds, as such close contact would be unbearable to him. But he didn't.

"Mom, I'm here," he reassured me.

"I died a thousand deaths today," I whispered, before I started sobbing uncontrollably in relief.

And then another miracle happened. Christian actually hugged me back. And he continued to hug me as he gently rocked me. It was wonderful. I might have forced his hand just a little by launching myself at him, but Christian was unquestionably hugging me back. The worst day of my life had just turned into one of the best days of my life.

Then I heard Carrick yelling 'He's alive!' Shit – you're here!" as he appeared from Taylor's office clutching his cell phone. Then he and Mia both came over to start hugging our boy as well. And then it seemed that everyone was crying and laughing and hugging, so happy to get Christian back because we all loved him so very much.

Finally Carrick pulled away, and I think even he was wiping a tear away as he clapped our son on the back.

Then I started to recollect myself. I'm not usually given to such wild outbursts, but I think it was excusable under the circumstances.

However, I wanted some answers now that I'd gotten over the initial shock.

"Where were you? What happened?"

All that worry, and all those terrible thoughts, and now he was here, in the flesh. I couldn't help it – I started crying again from sheer relief.

"Mom, I'm here. I'm good. It's just taken me a hell of a long time to get back from Portland. What's with the welcoming committee?"

Even as Christian was trying to explain to us what had happened, and reassuring us that he was fine, I could see that he was anxiously scanning the room, obviously looking for Anastasia. Then I saw him frown when he finally saw her, because he instantly noticed José holding her hand.

That my son is the jealous type is blindingly obvious, which is so silly of him. If he'd seen how utterly devastated Ana has been when we feared the worst, he would have known how irrational he was being. Surely as he saw her with tears pouring down her face, he would understand that she was totally in love with him, and had eyes for no one else. He had no reason whatsoever to be jealous in any way.

It clearly hadn't even occurred to Christian that we would all be so worried about him, and so he didn't bother to stop on his way back so he could call one of us to put us out of our torment. Men! They can be so thoughtless at times. So his cell was dead - call collect then!

"Oh Christian! Don't you ever do that to me again! Do you understand?" I yelled at him in frustration.

"Yes, Mom," he said but as he hugged me again and gently wiped my tears away, of course he was forgiven. It felt so amazingly wonderful to be hugged by him after all these years of restraint between us. It was almost, but not quite, almost worth all the worry we'd just been through.

But Mia was not quite so forgiving of his thoughtlessness. She slapped him hard on his chest as he went to hug her too.

"You had us all so worried," she yelled at him, before bursting into tears as she hugged him.

"I'm here now, for heaven's sake," he muttered, clearly bemused.

Carrick peeled Mia from her brother, then put a comforting arm around both of us, as Mia and I sobbed and laughed at the same time.

Elliot had been waiting his moment. He had been a tower of strength all evening, even though I knew he'd been desperately worried about his brother the whole time. He'd also been so sweet the way he'd solicitously looked after Ana when he brought her in to us and settled her down on the sofa, although I think she hardly noticed what was going on around her to be honest.

"Great to see you," Elliot said very loudly, probably to cover up the fact that he was pretty choked up, as he gave Christian a proper big man hug and slapped him on the back.

I looked over to see that Kate was now comforting Ana, although I privately thought she had been rather thoughtless the way she'd kept wandering off a lot of the time to see what was happening on the TV, rather than staying with her friend. Luckily José had been there with Ana, doing his best to be helpful and considerate.

But the time came when I think Christian had had enough of his family.

"I'm going to say hi to my girl now," he stated, as he stared longingly over at her. _The look of love._

I glanced up at Carrick and we both smiled, delighted to see this look. As he started to walk towards Ana, she leaped to her feet and literally threw herself at him.

"Christian," she sobbed, clearly beside herself with relief.

"Hush," Christian comforted her, closing his eyes as he clutched her to him as if his very life depended it.

It was very touching to see their reunion. No one who witnessed them could possibly be in any doubt that this was a young couple deeply in love. It was a wonderful moment, made all the more poignant because just a few short moments ago it had seemed to be an impossibility.

The young lovers whispered to each other and gazed into each other's eyes, kissing and touching each other, totally oblivious to the rest of the word around them.

I squeezed Carrick's hand as we both looked on in a sort of a trance, almost unable to believe what we were witnessing.

"They really do love each other," I whispered to him, grinning broadly.

"I know," he whispered back, grinning just as broadly.

"Are you okay?" Ana asked Christian anxiously, as she ran her hands all over him.

_He lets her touch him – everywhere_. I glanced over at Carrick again, and he squeezed my hand to let me know he'd noticed this too. This was more than we'd ever dreamed possible for our boy.

They simply couldn't bear to let each other go, as they cuddled up together. Christian very firmly tucked Ana under his arm, and let Mrs. Jones get him something to eat and drink rather than have to let go of his precious girl. Of course Mrs. Jones was more than happy to oblige, as she hastily wiped her eyes and hurried off to the kitchen to get him a nice cold Budvar to start with.

"So what the fuck happened to you? First I knew was when Dad called me to say the chopper was missing," Elliot wanted to know.

"Helicopter," Christian corrected him, as Elliot grinned back.

"Elliot!" I exclaimed. His brother hadn't been back for five minutes before he had to start with his old tricks, trying to wind Christian up to get a rise out of him.

His helicopter was one of the first things Christian bought himself when he entered the super-rich league, and to be honest he was a tad precious about it. He's always been fascinated by helicopters, and it was a dream come true for him to have his very own personal helicopter to fly. It meant he'd achieved one of his first major goals, and I think it was his way of proving to himself that he had made it. Always a stickler for detail, he insisted on correcting Elliot every time he referred to it as a chopper, because apparently that is not an acceptble term in the flying world. Of course that was like a red rag to a bull for Elliot, and he had to take it a stage further by using the term chopper to crudely refer to a certain part of his male anatomy. In the past I've asked Carrick to have a word with Elliot about it, but he always just laughs, and says boys will be boys.

But tonight, I think this was just Elliot's rather clumsy way of getting things back onto a more normal footing with his brother, after being so scared that he'd lost him forever.

Christian noticed Taylor quietly hovering in the background, so he raised his beer to him by way of an acknowledgment. They spoke briefly about organizing the collection of the helicopter, agreeing it could be left until the morning.

Behind the ever present professional man of steel front, I knew Taylor had been desperately worried today about his young employer. I think he had probably aged about ten years, because he felt terrible for not having been around when the whole crisis initially kicked off, even though Carrick had tried to assure him that of course he'd had no option but to go when his young daughter was rushed to hospital, and that there was no way anyone could have predicted what was going to happen today. So I wasn't surprised to see a very rare smile crease Taylor's face to see Christian safely returned.

I believe a special and unique bond exists between these two men, even though they may not even realize it, but I can clearly see it. That's why Taylor always goes above and beyond the call of duty for Christian, and why I feel reassured that he will always do his utmost to protect my son. Of course Carrick thinks I'm just being sentimental if ever I mention it, but I know I'm right, and I would bet that Gail Jones is aware of it too. But tonight Taylor didn't linger once he'd seen for himself the evidence that Christian was indeed safely back. He disappeared again, no doubt not wishing to encroach on our family reunion, although I'm sure none of us would have minded. Perhaps he felt the need for a stiff drink, and who could blame him if he did?

I was glad to see that Christian remembered his manners and was at least polite to José when they spoke a few words, as I thought he had been a good friend to Ana, supporting her the way he did in her hour of need, more so than Kate, to be honest. I don't think she's the type of girl who has a lot of patience. I think she'd rather be in the thick of the action, rather than be left quietly holding someone's hand.

Of course now we all wanted to find out what on earth had happened, so as Christian sat on the couch with Ana safely tucked up next to him, he filled us in. She sat staring at him, gripping his hand tightly the whole time he was speaking, drinking his presence in as if she couldn't believe he was actually here. I have to say I knew exactly how she felt.

He told us how he was flying back from a very successful meeting at WSU with Ros, his number two, and they decided to make a detour to look at Mount St. Helens by way of a small celebration because Ros hadn't seen it before. As they were flying low to view it, a fire broke out in the tail, so he'd had no option but to cut all the electronics and land by Silver Lake.

"A fire? Both engines? But I thought…" Carrick quizzed him.

He has a knack of cutting to the chase, quickly honing in on the most important facts - that's one of the reasons he's such a great lawyer. I could already see the cogs turning in his brain as he started to piece together what had happened to our son.

"I know. It was sheer luck I was flying so low," Christian murmured.

I noticed Ana shiver, as I did, because we were both thinking what a close call Christian had had. He put his arm around Ana when he felt her shiver, concerned that she was feeling cold. _So sweet_.

Kate seemed to want to know all the gory details, in just the way an inquisitive journalist would.

"How did you put out the fire?" she demanded.

"Extinguisher. We have to carry then – by law," Christian calmly replied.

"Why didn't you call or use the radio?" I asked next.

That's what was bugging me – the lack of communication, especially as he hadn't even contacted Ana. That's what had made me certain he really was in trouble – he might not think about his family a lot of the time, but he sure as hell thinks about his Ana, so if he called anyone it would have been her, I reasoned. But in any case, surely he'd realize how worried we'd all be under the circumstances? He disappeared in his helicopter, for crying out loud. All this worry could have been avoided if he had made just one brief call. So why didn't he?

Christian patiently explained that he couldn't risk switching on the electrics to use the radio because of the risk of fire. So then he and Ros had to navigate their way to the nearest road using their cell phones, which took a while because Ros was in heels. By the time they reached an area where they might have had a signal, both their cell batteries had died.

Hearing all the details of their struggles to get back was quite sobering, and as Ana hugged Christian again, he responded by casually pulling her onto his lap, where she snuggled right up against his chest as he rested his chin on her head. They looked totally comfortable and perfectly at ease with each other, and this was obviously normal behavior to them.

It was a revelation to me, and to everyone else. We had never seen him act like this before, not even with Mia, who has always been very close to him. I almost felt as if we were intruding, but Christian didn't seem in the least bit worried that we were seeing them like this. He acted as if it was perfectly normal to see him being so affectionate towards another human being, allowing such close physical contact. _My son, acting normally. With his girlfriend. Normal. Hallelujah. No longer a lone soul. No longer lonely._

"How did you get back to Seattle?" I still wanted to know.

Christian explained they had hitched a ride back, how a truck driver had stopped and agreed to bring them home, and how he had shared his lunch with them, but refused any payment. Hearing that there are still genuine, decent people out there, who are prepared to do a good turn and not expect anything back in return, restored some of my faith in humanity. But it transpired that this kind truck driver didn't have a cell they could borrow, which was Christian's excuse for not calling.

"Took forever to drive back. And he didn't have a cell – weird but true. I just didn't realize…"

"That we'd worry? Oh Christian, we've been going out of our minds!"

Did he truly have no idea of how much we cared about him? Was he that closed off from us?

"You've made the news, bro," Elliot informed him.

"Yeah. I figured that much when I arrived to this reception and the handful of photographers outside. I'm sorry Mom. I should have asked the driver to stop so I could phone. But I was anxious to be back," he explained, as his gaze came to rest on José, unwittingly giving away the reason why he was in such a hurry that he wouldn't even stop for a few minutes to make a call.

Silly, jealous, insecure boy. I guess he overreacted because Ana is his first girlfriend, and I have to remember that this is his first sexual relationship. He's probably finding such feelings overwhelming, especially after being in such an emotional and physical vacuum for the whole of his previous life. No wonder Ana found him intense and I could maybe understand why she had felt the need for some space away from him, following Elena's disclosure to me about their short break up last week. That was probably another factor in making Christian so possessive about Ana too. My poor complicated son. But looking at them together now, there didn't seem to be anything to worry about. Ana was still having bouts of crying.

"Hey. Stop with the crying," I heard him say to her, as he tried to wipe her tears away.

"Stop with the disappearing," Ana retorted, which made Christian smile. And my darling boy has such a beautiful smile. I'm hopeful that we are going to see a lot more of his happy smiling face in future, thanks to dear Anastasia.

"Electrical failure…that's odd, surely?" Carrick said again, and I sighed to myself, because I knew he was going to be like a dog with a bone, worrying about this until he got some answers.

"Yes, crossed my mind too, dad. But right now, I'd just like to go to bed and think about all that shit tomorrow," Christian replied wearily.

"So the media know that _the_ Christian Grey has been found safe and well?" Kate probed.

"Yes. Andrea and my PR people will deal with the media. Ros called her after we dropped her home."

"Yes, Andrea called me to let me know you were still alive," Carrick smiled.

I know he was very grateful to Andrea for ensuring that our family had been put in the picture before everything had kicked off in the media, and that she'd handled matters very efficiently and tactfully. I remembered reading a newspaper article about Christian a while back, where he stated that he attributed a large part of his success to surrounding himself with the best possible staff. Seeing how everyone had pulled together today in a time of crisis, I had no doubt this was true.

"I must give that woman a raise," Christian commented.

But I was sure it came down to much more than paying decent money to his staff. I thought my son would be surprised to discover the incredible level of loyalty and support he had personally earned from his staff, which had been so apparent today.

"Sure is getting late," Christian murmured next, as he tightened his grip on his girl. _Of course. He wants to be alone with his sweetheart._

"I think that's a hint, ladies and gentlemen, that my dear bro needs his beauty sleep," Elliot leered rather suggestively. He really can be rather tactless at times, especially as I saw Christian grimace.

But he was right. It was time for us to leave them together.

"Cary, my son is safe. You can take me home now," I declared to my wonderful husband. He had also died a thousand deaths tonight, yet he never stopped working, ceaselessly bombarding the authorities to ensure no effort was spared in their endeavors to find our son. And I knew he wouldn't be able to rest easy until he'd got some answers as to why the helicopter had suffered such a severe malfunction.

"Yes. I think we could use the sleep," he agreed, as he smiled down at me.

"Stay," Christian sweetly offered, but I knew he was just being polite.

"No, sweetheart, I want to get home. Now that I know you're safe."

Our work here was done. We had to let him and Ana enjoy their reunion in private. And we had birthday party preparations to get busy with in the morning.

Christian stood up to say his goodbyes, reluctantly letting go of Ana for now.

I hugged him again, actually resting my head against his chest, as I closed my eyes in sheer bliss, and he even hugged me back too. I would remember this night for many reasons, but the melting of my heart by my son for finally allowing me touch him would be the most memorable.

"I was so worried, darling," I whispered.

"I'm okay, Mom." He hugged me a little harder.

I studied him, and then looked over at Ana. I felt a slow smile spread over my face, because here was the reason my boy had finally started to come alive. She was the reason I had finally got to hold him so closely. And I had no doubt that she would continue to help him grow and develop now that she'd found her way to his heart. All because of the wonderful pure healing love they shared, which had shone out so brightly tonight.

"Yes. I think you are," I said contentedly.

Maybe the same guardian angel who had ensured that I was the receiving doctor on duty at Michigan's Children's Hospital on the day that Christian was brought in, had also ensured that Anastasia would be the one to drive up from WSU to interview him and capture his heart. Maybe that same guardian angel had brought him safely back down today. Maybe Ella was watching over her son, maybe that was the penance she'd been given to make up for her terrible neglect of him during her time on this earth.

Of course I kept these thoughts to myself, because I knew that Carrick would think that I was completely insane.

**_Author's note: Chapter 6 of Grace's blog will be posted on Friday 25_****_th_****_ January. After that, I will start filling in Christian's pov on my blog 'Meet Fifty Shades Continued' for some of the events from Book 3 – Freed. Look on my profile for details of how to access my blog._**

**_I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit. _**


	6. Chapter 6 The Devil Incarnate

**The Devil Incarnate**

**Chapter 6**

Despite the late hour when we got back from Christian's apartment, Carrick and I lay in bed together unable to get to sleep, as we both struggled to unwind after the most agonizing day of our lives.

"I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Christian walk in tonight. I was so relieved. I was so scared. I really thought…" I whispered, as I gripped his hand.

"I know, darling. It didn't look good, did it?" Carrick replied as he squeezed my hand back. "But it seems our son can actually fly that helicopter of his. He must be some pilot. How he managed to get it down safely when both engines failed, I just don't know. Both engines, for crying out loud!"

"Yes, of course, and I know you want to get to the bottom of that, but it's just going to have to wait for now, isn't it? But that's Christian. Anything he does, he has to excel at."

"Yes, which is why I still don't understand why he didn't complete his degree at Harvard, especially after all the lengths we went to in order to secure him a place when it was so difficult to get in. And it wasn't as if he was struggling academically was it? But now he has to carry stigma of being a drop out for the rest of his life."

"Oh please let it go, Cary! That's all water under the bridge now, and I hardly think anyone would judge our billionaire hot shot entrepreneur son a failure these days, would they?"

"No, I guess not," he sighed. "It just seems such a shame to me, when he was so close to finishing. Even Elliot managed to complete his Environmental Sciences and Engineering course to come out with a decent degree, when between you and me he was the one I always thought might end up dropping out."

"I guess it just goes to show you never can predict how things will turn out. I mean, look at the way we saw Christian behaving with Anastasia tonight. None of us would ever have believed the day would come when we would get to see him quite happily sitting there with his sweet lovely girlfriend cuddled up on his lap."

"No, it was a joy to see, wasn't it? They certainly seem very close – very close indeed. Which makes me wonder. You know how impulsive he can be, and seeing as this is Christian's first sexual encounter, do you think perhaps one of us should have a word with him, Grace? Perhaps we should make sure they're being careful, not getting carried away or taking risks?"

"No, Cary! Don't you dare say anything! I know Christian would be horrified if either of us were to try and interfere in that way. We just have to trust him. He might be sexually inexperienced, but he's a very responsible and sensible young man, and I know he's spoken to Elliot several times about practicing safe sex because he was worried about his brother's somewhat relaxed morals regarding girls. That's why I think Kate is very good for Elliot. She's clearly a strong minded young woman, and I think there's little doubt she won't stand for any nonsense from him, which is precisely what he needs," I insisted.

The last thing I wanted was another falling out between Christian and his father, however well-meaning Carrick's intentions were.

"I suppose you're right, Gracie," Carrick sighed. "It's just so hard letting go, and accepting they're adults. You think it'll get easier as they get older but it doesn't, does it?"

"I know, darling. But did you see the way Christian hugged me, I mean actually properly hugged me tonight? It felt so wonderful, especially after I thought I'd lost my darling boy. He actually let me hold him close. I feel we've turned a huge corner with him, and I'm certain it's all down to Anastasia. That's why I really want to make her feel part of our family, and why I don't want you upsetting the applecart in any way."

"Okay, message received loud and clear. I shall do my best to refrain from giving our son the benefit of my wisdom. Now, I really think we need to try and get some sleep, as I gather Mia has quite a birthday party planned for Christian."

"Yes, you're right. I do hope she hasn't gone overboard, you know how Christian hates any kind of fuss about his birthday. He usually just about tolerates a quiet family meal. I did try and keep her from going too mad, but you know how determined Mia can be. Perhaps I ought to warn him, I'd hate there to be any kind of an upset," I fretted.

"Maybe speak to him just before he's due to leave. That way it'll be too late for him to make an excuse to back out, but he'll still be forewarned and prepared," Carrick advised.

"Yes, I think that might be best. Well, good night my darling. I'm just so happy and thankful we got our boy back safe and sound."

"Me too. Good night, Grace."

Luckily, most of the party preparations were already well in hand, so the fact that we were rather later than usual in getting up in the morning didn't impact on things too much. Mia had put the catering experience she'd gained in Paris to good use to help me plan out a wonderful buffet, which we decided, after much discussion, to serve informally in the kitchen. Gretchen had enthusiastically offered to come in and help when she heard the occasion we were celebrating was Christian's birthday.

"So that means _he'll _actually be here then?" she'd beamed excitedly. Clearly she had a crush on my son, like most of the females he came into contact with.

Another female who also had a crush on my very handsome son was Mia's friend Lily, who had managed to inveigle an invite for herself on the somewhat dubious grounds of being her best friend. But as Mia had organized this party, I supposed she was entitled to have her best friend attend if she wanted. Somehow my daughter had managed to get hold of all sorts of Christian's closest associates – I wouldn't really call them friends as such. Christian doesn't really have friends. Sad but true.

But my parents would not be attending. All the stress and worry yesterday when Christian was missing, along with a late night, had brought on one of my father's angina attacks, and so reluctantly they had taken my advice to stay and home to rest.

"We'll take lots of photos to show you," I promised.

"You make sure you do, and tell both the boys to bring their girls over to visit real soon," my mother insisted.

"Christian's acting all weird," Mia pronounced at lunch time.

"What do you mean?"

"He's just rung because he wants me to let a florist into the boathouse for him. He's got some sort of a surprise lined up for Ana, apparently. In the boathouse, for goodness sake! I mean can you imagine anywhere less romantic? I tried to help him, suggest somewhere way more suitable, but he wouldn't listen."

"I should just go along with whatever your brother asked you to do, my dear. It's usually the best way with Christian," I smiled at her.

At least it sounded as if Christian fully intended to show up tonight with Anastasia, so that was promising. Even so, over the years I've learnt to always tread very carefully with my son, so I decided it would still be best to warn him about the party.

I rang his cell just before I judged they were probably about to leave, or maybe even on their way here to Bellevue.

"Hi, darling. How are you feeling today? Fully recovered from your ordeal yesterday?"

"I'm fine, Mom. Really. Look, I was going to talk to you later, but seeing as you've rung, I wanted to ask a favor?"

"Sure, anything. How can I help?"

"Can you recommend a top Orthopedic Surgeon? I mean the best there is, in Seattle or Portland?"

"Well yes, as a matter of fact I can. I trained with David Archer, and he's now the top Orthopedic Surgeon at the Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. He'd certainly be who I'd recommend. Why are you asking?"

"Dan McAllister, the truck driver who gave us a ride back yesterday. He told us his wife is in constant pain because she needs an urgent hip replacement, but their insurance doesn't cover it. I was hoping maybe you could…"

"Give me all her details when you come over, Christian. I'll speak to David personally and get her an urgent consult," I immediately insisted.

"Thanks, Mom. I thought you'd be able to help. And just tell your doctor friend to bill me direct. No need for McAllister to be involved," he said.

This was so typical of Christian. Quietly helping others with no fuss. I was very proud of him, and only too willing to step in.

"No, Christian, your father and I will take care of this. Anyone who helps our family the way that truck driver did most certainly deserves our help in return. It's the least we can do. And once I've explained to David all the circumstances, I'm sure he'll go out of his way to make sure this lady receives the full gold star treatment."

There's a professional etiquette in the medical profession. Speaking personally to another doctor to request their assistance means a patient is to be treated as a VIP. We don't need to spell it out, it's just an accepted unwritten rule.

"That'd be perfect. Thanks, Mom. Now, was there anything in particular you were ringing for? Only we were just about to leave."

"Well, I just wanted to warn you that your sister has excelled herself in organizing quite a party for you, rather than the quiet dinner you're probably expecting. But I don't want you to worry, because they are all friends of yours," I explained, crossing my fingers that he wouldn't react badly.

But he really surprised me by how he took my news.

"That's cool, Mom. Actually, I'm pleased they'll all be there, because I'll be making an announcement," he told me.

"Really? An announcement? What kind of an announcement?" I asked curiously.

"I've asked Ana to marry me, and she had said yes. I asked Ray, her stepfather, for his permission, and he has given it. So tonight I will be announcing our engagement."

I nearly dropped the phone in my excitement.

"_CHRISTIAN! _That's wonderful news. You and Ana, getting engaged! Oh I'm so happy for you both, darling."

This was perfect news as far as I was concerned, even if it had come out of the blue, and even if they hadn't known each other that long. I just knew they were right for each other, and it was hardly as if they needed to wait while they saved up, was it?

"Thanks, Mom. Just keep it to yourself for now. I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise for everyone."

Well, of course I had to share the news with Carrick . How could I possible keep it secret from him when I had such a huge soppy smile plastered all over my face, and I was bouncing up and down with glee as if I was Mia?

"Yes, that's great…but you don't think they're rushing into things just a little bit?" my cautious husband worried. "Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly approve of Ana, but is this not another case of Christian being impulsive again? Maybe a knee jerk reaction to his relief at cheating death? She is his first girlfriend after all, and they've only known each other for a few weeks."

"Oh don't be so unromantic, Cary! They're head over heels in love, they're perfect for each other, and Ana has already worked wonders with him in these few short weeks. They're getting engaged, showing the world they're serious about each other. Just be happy for our son. You can't deny you've seen the change in Christian for yourself, haven't you?"

"Of course I have. So yes, I suppose I can be happy for them. And getting engaged isn't the same thing as getting married. In a year or two, it'll be the perfect time for them to set a date."

So it was going to be a triple celebration. A birthday, a safe return, and now an engagement as well. As planned, most of the guests arrived before Christian so they would all be there to welcome him, but they were unaware that there was also going to be a special announcement. I had to try my best to contain my excitement so as not to spoil the surprise, but Mia still kept giving me odd looks. My daughter knows me very well.

Carrick and I were very pleased that John Flynn was able to come to the party, and that he'd brought his wife Rhian with him this time. I liked her very much indeed, and we chatted for quite a while about her two little boys, who sounded delightful and clearly kept her very busy.

I hadn't had much chance to catch up with Elliot since he and Kate had returned from their vacation in Barbados. They had both certainly picked up a nice healthy tan. Kate looked stunning in a gorgeous red dress, and Elliot couldn't take his eyes off her. So now both my sons were head over heels in love it seemed. Two very different girls, but both perfect in their own way for my two very different boys. But Kate seemed on edge for some reason as we waited for Christian and Ana to arrive, although I had no idea why. I wondered if perhaps she and Elliot had had some sort of a lovers tiff.

Elena made her way over to me to have a few words, looking divinely elegant as usual in a close fitting black silk dress.

"Grace, darling, so lovely to see you," she smiled, as she air kissed my cheek. "You must have been so relieved yesterday when you finally found out Christian was safe. I know I certainly was."

"You have no idea, Elena. It was the worst day of our lives when we thought…anyway, enough of all that. He's safe and well, and very happy with Anastasia."

Elena's smile seemed to freeze a little.

"Oh, he's still with her, is he? I'd have thought that would have all blown over by now. She really doesn't seem his type to me," Elena stated, as she took a sip of her drink.

But before I could pick her up on what she could possibly mean, Carrick pulled me to one side.

"Christian and Ana have arrived," he whispered, "But I don't know what's going on, because before we even made it here to the living room, they were accosted by Kate and dragged off into the dining room for some sort of a private meeting. She literally slammed the door in my face, Grace!"

"What on earth is going on? Maybe Kate has found out about the engagement and is annoyed that Ana hasn't told her first. They are best friends after all. I can't think what else it could be, can you?" I worried. This was the last thing we needed.

"Look, we'll give them a few minutes, and if they haven't reappeared, I'll pop my head round the door to see what's going on," I suggested. "It's probably nothing, just girl talk."

So when they still hadn't appeared after a few minutes, I tentatively knocked on the door and poked my head round.

"Everything okay, darling?" I asked Christian. I couldn't help noticing that he looked less than happy.

"Everything's fine, Mrs. Grey," Kate said quickly, as she seemed to glance at Ana guiltily.

"Fine, Mom," Christian confirmed. Well, whatever it was, it seemed to have blown over now.

"Good. Then you won't mind if I give my son a birthday hug," I beamed at him. And once again, Christian gave me a wonderful big hug, which I savored every second of as I closed my eyes in sheer bliss. So yesterday wasn't a one off fluke, because Christian was hugging me again. I was reassured that everything really was fine.

"Happy birthday, darling. I'm so glad you're still with us," I whispered.

Yesterday I'd feared we would never celebrate another birthday with him, but now he was safely returned, and we had even more good news to celebrate. Christian and Ana were getting _engaged_.

"Mom, I'm fine," Christian said, as he gave me one of his rare wonderful smiles. I could see that he was happy. _Really_ happy. Probably the happiest he'd ever been in his whole life.

"I'm so happy for you." I caressed his beautiful face, and he didn't even flinch as he grinned back at me. _Thank you for bringing about this change, dearest Anastasia._

"Well, kids, if you've all finished your tête-à-tête, there's a throng of people here to check you really are in one piece, Christian, and to wish you a happy birthday."

"I'll be right there," he promised

I glanced over at Kate and Ana, but all seemed well. So I couldn't help myself, I gave Ana a special wink as I left the room. _My future daughter in law._

Back in the living room, I noticed that although Elena had been talking to Elliot, she made a bee line straight for Christian when he and Ana finally made their entrance. She kissed Christian on both cheeks and even hugged him, but she seemed to ignore Ana, which irritated me.

What concern was Christian's relationship to her anyway? She was only here at his party because a few days back, she'd rung to ask what we had planned for his birthday, and then it had seemed rude not to include her. She'd also rung me yesterday when Christian was missing, trying to find out what was going on, but I'm afraid I cut her rather short as I didn't feel like talking to her, and I wanted to keep my cell free, just in case Christian had called. Then it went clean out of my mind to let her know he'd got back safely, but she must have heard all about it on the news anyhow.

Finally I saw her acknowledge Ana, but her smile was so false that I wondered what exactly her problem was. Why was Elena so set against Ana, when it was so obvious how happy she made Christian?

Then Christian called for everyone's attention, and I hugged myself in anticipation of the wonderful news our son was about to announce, as I held Carrick's hand and smiled happily up at him. Even he looked relaxed and happy, having pushed his doubts to one side. Lord but that man worries about his kids but I love him all the more for it.

"…Miss Anastasia Rose Steele has consented to be my wife, and I'd like you to be the first to know," Christian ended his short speech. And he looked so proud and so happy, that I thought my heart would burst with joy to see our boy so happily in love.

I looked round at everyone's reaction. Elliot whooped, put his fingers in his mouth to whistle loudly and then applauded. Mia squealed and clapped her hands in delight as she jumped up and down. Kate smiled broadly and applauded. Everyone seemed happy for the young couple.

Except young Lily, of course, and Gretchen, both of whom turned virtually green with envy as they looked at Ana. And then I noticed that Elena had virtually the same look on her face, as she gaped open mouthed at the happy couple. Perhaps it was because her own marriage had ended so acrimoniously that she found it hard to be happy for a young couple just about to set out on their matrimonial pathway, but if that was the case I thought it very mean spirited of her.

I went over to give Ana a big hug and kiss, determined that she should be in doubt about how thrilled I was about this news. Carrick did the same, even sneaking a quick hug with Christian.

"Oh, Ana – I am so delighted you're going to be family. The change in Christian…He's…happy. I am so thankful to you," I found myself gushing, making Ana blush deeply. But she looked very happy.

Of course Mia wanted to know all the details about their wedding plans, which clearly they hadn't even gotten around to discussing themselves yet, and I could see Christian getting irritated as he threatened to fly to Vegas. Over my dead body! I would certainly be ensuring they had a beautiful wedding, not some rush job in a tacky Vegas chapel. I thought Christian was just joking – I hoped so anyhow.

"Way to go, bro," Elliot said, as he clapped his brother on the back, genuinely happy for him.

"Hey dude, hope you're up for the bachelor party of the decade. I just happen to have the number of a contact who can arrange our very own private strip show," I heard Elliot whisper in Kate's brother Ethan's ear as he smirked suggestively, while Ethan just grinned back at him.

Christian and Ana spent some time circulating round to speak to everyone, and I was happy to note that my son seemed perfectly ease, because all the guests were people he trusted and felt comfortable with. Mia had done very well, despite my initial doubts.

Just as I was announcing that dinner was being served in the kitchen, I noticed Mia disappearing with Ana into the dining room, along with a couple of Carrick's lemon martinis. He loves making up these recipes and trying them out on these occasions, but personally I prefer champagne.

Then I remembered Mia mentioning something about Christian wanting her to distract Ana so he could go and check out his surprise that the florists had been working on in the boathouse. I hadn't seen what they'd been doing as Carrick had said it was okay for them to drive their van right up to the boathouse. So once Mia had let them in, we just left them to it, especially as we had so much else to get ready in the house.

When neither Christian, Ana nor Mia appeared to partake in the food that we'd spent ages preparing, I was slightly annoyed, so I went looking for them, heading for the dining room where I'd last seen the girls. But I was shocked and perturbed to hear angry raised voices coming from in there, and I was thankful that the rest of the guests were all in the kitchen, busily helping themselves to the buffet.

As I got closer, I realized with horror that one of the voices I could hear was Christian's. Surely he wasn't angry with Mia or Ana? I stood and listened for a moment to try and work out what was going on.

"I taught you everything you know, everything you need," I heard a female arrogantly declaring. _Elena?_

"You taught me how to fuck, Elena. But it's empty, like you. No wonder Linc left. You never once held me. You never said you loved me."

"Love is for fools, Christian."

She taught him everything? Christian has been having an affair with Elena? That _whore_ has been seducing my son?

A surge of white hot fury raged through me, and I didn't even think about what I was doing. I just wanted that…that…_slut_ gone.

"GET OUT OF MY HOUSE."

Christian, Elena, and Ana all turned to look at me as I stood in the doorway. Ana was as white as a sheet, Christian appeared to be virtually incandescent with rage, and Elena had something dripping from her face. From the empty glass in Ana's hand, I guessed it was probably one of Carrick's cocktails. _Good girl, Ana._

I have never been so angry in all my life as I marched across the room to confront that bitch from hell.

I slapped her as hard as I could, really hard, right across her face. The sound of it resonated loudly round the room.

And I thought that was really quite restrained of me under the circumstances. I wanted to slap her repeatedly, pull her hair out and kick her boney ass. But I didn't. Just one hard slap was all I dealt her. But the thought of that evil woman…with my son…her teaching him…touching him in that way… '_You taught me how to fuck, Elena'_…I felt physically sick.

I saw her hand possessively touching Christian's sleeve. How _dare _she contaminate him.

"Take your filthy paws off my son, you whore, and get out of my house – now!" I spat at her.

At first Elena just stood there blinking, until she collected herself and hurried from the room as she clutched her cheek, which was glowing bright red from my slap. I realized my hand was really smarting and throbbing from where I'd hit her so hard, but it was worth it.

But now that Elena had gone, I needed to find out just what exactly had been going on – from my son.

"Ana, before I hand him over to you, would you mind giving me a minute or two alone with my son?" I said quietly, just about managing to keep my temper under control, although I could feel my hands were shaking with rage.

"Of course," Ana whispered, then hurriedly made her escape from the room, as Christian's eyes followed her longingly. But he had to remain behind to face the music. There would be no escaping from me until I had some answers about the shocking revelation I had just stumbled across.

"How long, Christian?" I asked. _How could I have not seen this?_

"It was a long time ago," he replied evasively.

_What did that mean? How long ago? Six months? A year?_

"How old were you?"

"Like I said, it was all a long time ago."

_Oh no, you don't. Don't think you can fob me off. Not this time, not about this._

"Tell me. How old were you when this all started?" _How young did Elena like her toy boys to be?_

Christian realized I was not going to give up until I got to the bottom of things, so he resigned himself to his fate as he took a deep breath.

"Fifteen."

_Fifteen!_

I was shocked to my very core. This was far, far worse than I'd initially thought. Elena had seduced my son when he was still a child? He'd only been fifteen? He'd been a minor? She had known he was under the legal age of consent, and yet she'd still molested him?

All these years she had pretended to be my friend, when the truth was she was a sick pedophile, grooming and taking advantage of my complicated and disturbed son for her own perverted pleasure. And I hadn't spotted it. Carrick hadn't spotted it. We were two supposedly intelligent, educated adults – I'm a children's doctor for crying out loud. I'm supposed to be trained to pick up on these things. Yet this had happened right under my nose, and I'd just stood back, assuming Christian's shut off and secretive behavior was all down to his difficult start in life. Which of course Elena knew all about – from me, and then she'd used that information to manipulate my son. That was truly evil of her. She was the Devil Incarnate.

"You were just a child, Christian."

"No, I wasn't Mom. I was an angry, out of control young man. You remember how I was?"

"Yes, of course I remember. But you _were_ still a child. In the eyes of the law, and in my eyes too. How did it all start?" _How did I miss this? What kind of a mother am I?_

"You really want to know all this stuff?"

"Yes I do. I need to know how I couldn't see what must have been going on right under my nose." _All those lies he must have told and I swallowed them all._

"It started that summer I did some work for Elena in her back yard. She came on to me. Made me stop drinking and getting into trouble, in return for….sexual favors."

All these years I thought Christian was gay and celibate because he never brought a girl home, when all along Elena was taking advantage of a disturbed child and molding him to hide the truth. Images of her showing him exactly what she wanted him to do kept forcing their way into my unwilling mind. I had to swallow hard to keep the bile down, as I thought of the means she must have employed to get him to conform and toe the line so effectively, when everything we'd tried had failed so miserably.

"You and Dad thought I was taking extra curricula activities at school, but actually I was seeing Elena."

"I remember. I remember how thrilled we were, because we thought that you were finally joining in some normal, healthy school activities. But now I find out that all along you were lying to us and sneaking off to see that… trollop." _Lies, lies and more lies._

"I'm sorry, Mom. Truly I am. But at the time, it just seemed right, and it worked for me. You and Dad seemed really happy that I settled down and didn't get into fights any more. I started working hard at school, because that's what Elena told me I had to do. Everything in my life became a lot calmer and easier to cope with, because of her."

This was terrible. Even now, he couldn't seem to see that what she did to him was wrong. That's how much she had groomed and manipulated him.

"But Christian, don't you see, she was taking advantage of you. She was an adult, a married woman, and she pretended to be my friend, when all along she was…seducing my son. She knew it was wrong, but she manipulated you and took advantage of you because she knew all about your issues through me. That's despicable. It's truly evil. So how long did it go on for?"

"Until I was twenty one."

Dear God! It wasn't just a fling for a few months. This had been long term.

"Six years! You were seeing her for six years? So in all that time, she prevented you from forming any kind of a normal relationship with a nice young girl? That was the real reason you never brought any girls home?"

"That was never going to happen was it, Mom? Nice young girls weren't interested in me. Not with all my issues and problems. "

"We'll never know will we? You were never given the opportunity to find out, because that vile woman had her claws so deeply into you. Why did it finish? Who broke things off in the end?"

"It finished when Linc found out. In all honesty it was over by then in any case, and we ended up as just friends."

On top of everything else, Christian was having an affair with a married woman. How could he not have seen that was wrong?

"Linc found out? Is that why they divorced?"

"They would have divorced anyway, but I guess it was the catalyst."

"Christian, surely you knew what you were doing was wrong? We brought you up to know right from wrong, didn't we?" _Were we such terrible parents? If we failed to instill the basics of right from wrong in our son, we must have been, surely?_

"Of course you did, Mom. Don't go blaming yourself. It was me, just the way I was."

"If I blame anyone, it's Elena. She's a whore, a slut. No, worse than that, she's a pedophile."

"That was Ana's reaction too," Christian murmured. "She's really struggled to understand and come to terms with the relationship we had.

"So Ana knows all about Elena?" _And she's still with Christian? Did this have anything to do with their break up, and why Elena knew about that when I didn't? No wonder she's always acted as if she knew my son better than I did. Because in a lot of ways she did, and that hurt – really hurts._

"Yes, we have no secrets. I've told her everything."

Well that was one less thing to worry about. If Christian had kept all this secret and Ana had just found out, then it would surely have been the end of their relationship. But at least it seems they are starting out on the right footing by being open and honest with each other.

"Well, I think that's very wise, and the first sensible thing I've heard you say in all this. So what happened tonight?"

"Some sort of a disagreement between them. I was just trying to get to the bottom of it when you came in, but I know Ana loathes Elena with a vengeance. She always has."

I knew there was a reason I liked Ana so much. It seems she has great judgment as she instinctively knew Elena was bad news.

"I'm with Ana on that score. I loathe her too, now. The evil witch was trying to break you and Ana up, wasn't she? She's jealous of Ana. I knew something was wrong when I saw her with Ana earlier, just after you'd announced your engagement. Elena had a really unpleasant fake smile plastered on her face, and I couldn't figure out why. Now I know."

"Something like that maybe. Elena's always looked out for me, so I guess she's finding it hard to let go."

Christian thought Elena looked out for him? Tried to control and manipulative him for her own benefit more like. How could he not see her for what she is? Maybe that's another thing Ana is opening up his eyes to. Pure, honest love, that's what Ana is showing him.

"I heard her telling you that love is for fools. You know she's wrong about that, don't you?"

"I do now. Now that I've found Anastasia. She's shown me the true meaning of love. I know now it was just empty sex with Elena."

"I think you'd better go and find your sweet lovely Ana, and make sure she's alright, don't you? And I think I've heard just about all I can take in right now. I'm still mad at you for deceiving us for so long, but I'm far angrier at Elena for corrupting my son, an innocent and vulnerable young boy."

"All I can say in my defense is that it didn't seem like that to me at the time, Mom. But you're right. I need to go and find my girl. Just one thing though – do you have to tell Dad?"

"Yes, Christian, I do. No secrets. Just like you and Ana, your father and I have no secrets in our marriage. I have to tell him. But otherwise, we'll keep this just between us. Your brother and sister don't need to know."

"That's what I thought you'd say," he sighed, as he left the room to go and find his Anastasia.

I was determined that evil bitch was not going to ruin my son's party, so I plastered on a smile, and pretended everything was fine in front of our guests, just about holding myself together, throwing myself into singing along with the karaoke with Kate in the family room to distract myself as best I could, and avoiding Carrick because he'd have known something was wrong straight away. I'd decided I'd tell him once all our guests had left, to avoid a potentially ugly scene in front of them all.

Christian and Ana had disappeared, I imagined to the boathouse for whatever this surprise that he had planned for her, and quite frankly I was pleased that he was out of my sight while I tried to get my head around his horrendously shocking admission that Elena had stolen his innocence and his virginity when he'd only been fifteen.

For years I'd worried myself that our son was celibate and gay, lonely because he was unable to form any kind of a loving relationship due to the terrible neglect and abuse he'd suffered during the first four years of his life. And then, after I found out about Anastasia, I'd happily assumed in my ignorance that she was his first lover, and I'd thought how sweet it was that they were discovering the joy of physical love together, when all along, his views on love, sex and relationships had been tainted by that She- Devil.

'_You never once said you loved me'_ I'd heard Christian say. '_Love is for fools_', she'd callously replied. So had it been just a purely physical relationship between them? Was that better or worse? I decided it just made Elena an even bigger whore. She'd used and abused my son and not even made him feel loved and comforted.

Finally all the guests left. Kate and Elliot were staying over as were Christian and Ana, with the idea that everyone could relax and enjoy a few glasses of champagne, and then we could have a nice family breakfast together in the morning before everyone left.

So eventually I had Carrick to myself – Christian and Ana had yet to return from the boathouse, so I decided it was now or never.

"Well, I must say that was a great evening…" he started to say, but stopped when he took one look at my face

"Oh Carrick, I don't know how to tell you this…" I started, as I struggled to hold back the tears I'd kept in check all evening.

"Good lord, what on earth is the matter, Grace?" he asked, as he sat me down on one of the chairs at the kitchen table.

"I found out…I overheard…she was so…he said…"

"Take it slowly. You're not making a whole lot of sense here, my love."

I took a deep breath to calm myself.

"Earlier on, when I went looking for Christian and Ana to tell them to come and get something to eat, I heard raised voices coming from the dining room. So I listened to try and work out what was going on…"

I paused to take a shaky breath, as Carrick frowned in bewildered concern.

"It was Elena and Christian shouting at each other, while Ana was just standing there watching them."

"But why would Elena and Christian…?"

"Because Elena had been really horrid to Ana."

"Horrid to Ana? Elena? Why would she do that?"

"Carrick, I discovered tonight that Christian and Elena had an affair. She seduced him when he was only fifteen, and then it carried on for six whole years, right under our noses."

My husband was so shocked that he literally paled in front of me, and had to sit himself down on the chair next to me

"No! That can't be right. You must have it wrong, Grace. Christian wasn't capable…he couldn't bear to be touched…" He struggled to try and work out how it could be possible.

"Elena knew all about his issues. I think she used them to manipulate him so that he felt grateful to her for giving him sex. When I confronted Christian, the way he explained it was that she used sex as an incentive to control him, so that he stopped getting into trouble and started studying harder. He seems to think that was a good thing, and that he's indebted to her, but that's only because she's groomed him to see it that way."

"But it started when he was only _fifteen_, you say?"

I nodded my head.

"We've included that woman in our close circle when all this time, she was a pedophile, preying on our son?"

"I know. That thought makes me sick to my stomach. I slapped her in the face, Carrick. Really hard. But I'm not ashamed, because she deserved it," I said, as I unconsciously rubbed my still sore hand while Carrick stared at me. He knew I never normally condoned physical violence, but there are always exceptions.

"I see," he muttered, bemused.

"Carrick, I want that perverted evil monster charged with every possible crime you can think of, so everyone knows what she is, and then they can lock her up and throw away the key. Would that be possible, after all this time?"

"Theoretically, yes. But in reality…I'm not so sure it would be a good idea." He held his hand up as I started to protest. "Just think about it, Grace. First off, Christian would have to be prepared to cooperate fully to give evidence, which knowing what private a person he is, combined with what you've just told me, I don't think is very likely. Secondly, all the sordid details would have to come out in court, so the newspapers would have a field day. Would you really want our family to have to listen to all that? And what about Anastasia? Just think how it would affect her. How much does she know anyway?"

"Everything, apparently. That's what Christian told me. He said they have no secrets, which I think is the right way for them to go. But as Ana knows all about Elena, I imagine that's why her drink, one of your finest lemon martinis by the way, had ended up all over her face, because the evil jealous bitch was trying to break them up. That's why I can't just stand back and let her get away with what she's done. She is still trying to manipulate our son and control him even now, isn't she? I couldn't understand why she was so negative about Ana all the time, but now it's obvious. She can't bear to lose her influence over Christian, especially as he's so rich and successful these days as well as being extremely good looking. I can't even begin to imagine the methods she must have employed to have had him so completely under her spell over such an extended period of time. And when I think about how she must have been laughing behind my back for all these years when I was worrying myself sick in case Christian was gay but scared to come out, when all along she knew.…"

I remembered how she had boasted to me just last week that she had always knows he wasn't gay. Of course she did - it all made perfect sense now. All her little hints about how she knew more about him than I did. _His own mother_. But now it transpires that she did know him in ways I never could – ways that she should not have known him either.

"So did Christian imagine himself in love with her? Is that why he acted that way? Clearly he knew it wasn't acceptable behavior and that's why he acted so secretly. And she must still have been a married woman at the time. How could he have possibly thought it was alright? He was supposedly such an intelligent boy."

"So I take it you've told him, Mom?"

We both looked up to see Christian and Ana making their way back into the kitchen from the back yard. It really upset me to see the way the happy smile died on Ana's face as she worked out what Christian's comment meant.

"Ana, my dear, I would really like to talk to my son on his own, if you wouldn't mind?" Carrick said, as he stared intently at Christian.

"Yes, of course, I was going to go straight up to bed anyway," she blushed, and then hurried out of the room. Christian had asked if they could have his old bedroom rather than one of the guest bedrooms, so that was where I had taken their overnight things earlier.

"So, Dad, do I get the full lecture about how irresponsible I've been? Or are you going to accept that I'm an adult now and have moved on?" Christian's voice was deceptively quiet as he helped himself to a glass of wine.

"Don't act like a sullen teenager, Christian. Surely you can appreciate that your mother and I are extremely hurt and upset to discover that you have been lying to us for years, deceiving us and going behind our backs, when all along you must have known that what you were doing was wrong?"

"Like I told Mom. At the time it seemed to make you happy that I was finally calming down, finally becoming a socially acceptable son. And it was all down to Elena's influence. You may not like it, but that's the honest truth. At that time, she was good for me."

"No! How can you possibly think that about a woman who groomed and seduced a fifteen year old boy? Your judgment was impaired then because you were still a child, but how can you possibly still defend her now, as an adult?"

"Let's just agree to disagree about all this. What's done is done, and I can't change anything. I'm really sorry you had to find out about it this way, and that I've caused you so much grief, yet again." Christian looked directly at me as he said this. "We're never going to see eye to eye, Dad, and quite honestly, all I want to think about right now is the future and marrying Ana. Please, can't you just be happy for us?"

"Of course I'm happy about you and Ana getting engaged. But it's hard to move on because I'm just worried that you won't accept that maybe your judgment was impaired about having a love affair with an older, married woman."

"It wasn't a love affair, actually. It was just sex, okay? Would you rather I'd have paid a hooker to sort me out? Or would it suit you better if I'd been the lonely celibate gay that you all thought I was?"

"Christian! Please! There's no need to be like that," I said, shocked by his words, but knowing all too well how cruel and cutting he could be when he got into one of his really bad tempers, and how he and Carrick were in serious danger of having another massive falling out. And I had already started to think of ways I could punish Elena without going through the courts, and I didn't want anything to risk damaging things between Ana and Christian.

"Perhaps Christian has a point, Carrick. What is the point of raking over old coals? We need to look forward and concentrate on the good news about his engagement to Ana."

"Yes, I think that would be far more productive, Mom. Especially as we've decided we'd like to get married in one month's time, hopefully here if you'll agree."

"A _month_?" Carrick spluttered. "I thought you'd have a long engagement, give you time to get to know each other better. Don't get me wrong, Ana seems a nice enough girl, but you've barely known each other for five minutes, and now you're saying you want to get married in a _month_?"

"Of course, if that's going to be a problem for you Dad, I'm sure we can find somewhere else to get married," Christian calmly stated, as he took a sip of wine and coolly stared his father in the eye.

"No, no, I'm sure it'll be fine," I hurriedly protested, horrified at the thought of them going off to get married somewhere else because of Carrick's attitude, but neither of them was listening to me.

"So, what's the big rush? Any reason in particular?" Carrick asked suspiciously.

"If you're asking me if I've got Ana knocked up, the answer is no, I wouldn't be that stupid. The simple truth is we want to get married as soon as possible, and there are no financial constraints to prevent us from doing so."

"Ah yes, because of your considerable wealth. So what kind of a prenup have you agreed with Ana? Who have you got drawing it up for you? I can advise on the best format to suit your circumstances."

"Prenup? Why the fuck would I want a prenup?" Christian growled furiously, as he scowled at his father.

"Because it is a basic, sensible precaution for a wealthy young man such as yourself, especially when you're rushing impulsively into getting married. This is nothing personal against Ana, but bearing in mind what we've discovered tonight, I think it's fair to say that your judgment in personal relationships is suspect to say the least."

"Oh, so it's back to that is it? Well I'm telling you now there will be no prenup. I don't need one. Ana isn't interested in me for my money, and in any case, if she were ever to leave me, the money would be worthless. So there is no point in having a prenup, and I refuse to discuss this any further. Good night, Mom. Dad."

And with that, our son stalked off out of the kitchen.

I gave my husband a slow hand clap.

"Bravo, Carrick. You handled that so well, implying that Ana is a gold digger after his money."

"I did no such thing! A prenup would be no reflection on Ana whatsoever, but surely you can see that I'd be derelict in my duty both as his father and as a lawyer not to insist he takes the sensible precaution of negotiating a fair prenup, especially when he's worked so hard to build up all his considerable assets. And don't forget that many people rely on him for their living now. As their employer, he has responsibilities that he can't just foolishly ignore and take risks with."

"I know you're only trying to protect and look out for our son, but alienating him is not going to achieve anything is it?" I sighed, worried that if both men stuck to their guns there was going to be an almighty rift in our family.

"Hopefully, he'll have calmed down and will see sense about setting up a prenup tomorrow," Carrick persisted.

"I wouldn't hold your breath on that one," I murmured.

That night as we lay in bed, I began to make plans.

"I may not get to see that whore Elena receive the punishment she deserves in the law courts, but I'm going to make it my personal mission to ensure that forthwith she is persona non grata amongst all our friends and connections. She relies heavily on the patronage of the rich and elite of Seattle to make her business successful. Her reputation is everything."

"Now you be careful, Grace," worried Carrick. "The last thing you want is to give Elena reason to launch a defamation of character case. You need to be fully aware of what could be construed as libel or slander."

"Oh, don't you worry. Trust me, I can do subtle. I'll start by letting it be known that no one in my family will be attending her salon again. I will then ensure that slut's name is removed from the invitation list of every social event on the calendar worth attending. It won't be that hard. Nobody really likes her; she has no real friends. She has only been accepted into the wealthy higher echelons of Seattle society because of her connections with this family. I will now be very publically severing those connections, All I have to do is cross her name from those invitation lists that are passed to me for approval, which will speak volumes without me having to utter a single word. I don't have to give a reason, but if anyone asks, all I have to say is 'no comment', and people will draw their own conclusions. Bottom line - I don't want to have to lay my eyes on that sick, evil, bitch-troll from hell ever again."

"I see," Carrick muttered, but I hadn't finished yet.

"Most people regard Elena Lincoln as nothing more than a social climber. Replacing Elena's name on all the lists with Anastasia's will show everyone where our allegiance lies when she had the audacity to snub our son's fiancée. And Carrick? I expect your full support in making it crystal clear to the entire world that _every _member of the Grey-Trevelyan family is totallyover the moon and fully supportive of our son's choice of Anastasia as his future wife."

"Grace, of course you will have my full support. Nothing I said tonight about the prenup was in any way intended as a critism of Ana, far from it. If anything, a prenup would protect her against any insinuations regarding her motives for marrying Christian. Truly, I do honestly think it would be for the best all round."

So clearly Carrick hadn't given up on the prenup yet.

The following morning we were all gathered together in the kitchen for breakfast, when the thorny subject of the prenup reared its ugly head again. Somehow the Seattle Nooz website had already gotten hold of the news of Christian's engagement, although they didn't seem to have any details about Ana. But already they were speculating about the type of prenup she'd be signing. Perhaps someone had sold some information to the papers - _Gretchen_? Or perhaps someone had wanted to stir up malicious gossip? _Elena?_

Unfortunately Mia didn't think before she tactlessly read the column out loud to everyone.

"Word has reached us here at the Nooz that Seattle's most eligible bachelor, _the_ Christian Grey, has finally been snapped up and wedding bells are in the air. But who is the lucky, lucky lady? The Nooz is on the hunt. Bet she's reading one helluva prenup."

Christian glared furiously at Mia, but far worse was Ana's reaction. Her look of shock and horror as the blood drained from her face, was evidence that the thought of a prenup had never even occurred to her, as was only natural for a sweet but naïve young girl like her.

Christian immediately tried to reassure her as he shook his head and mouthed '_no_' to her.

"Christian…" Carrick started to say.

Of course he couldn't resist the opportunity to open up the subject again, as I suppose this article proved it was a subject that was not going to go away.

"I'm not discussing this again," Christian snapped back. "No prenup," he stated firmly before turning back to read his paper again.

"Christian, I'll sign anything you and Mr. Grey want," Ana said very quietly, as Carrick looked at her rather guiltily. Even he could see that she was completely mortified by all of this, and totally sincere in her offer. But now she'd reverted to addressing him formally as Mr. Grey again, because he was making her feel like an outsider from our family. And I wanted to throttle him for that.

And Mia – I would be having words with my daughter to try and get her to learn to think before she opened her mouth in future

Christian looked up and glared again.

"No," he snapped at her.

"It's to protect you," Ana bravely persisted.

But I felt we were all intruding into something that they needed to sort out between themselves.

"Christian, Ana – I think you should discuss this in private," I suggested as I threw a black look at my husband. _Let the matter drop for goodness sake, I ordered him with a frosty look._

"Ana, this is not about you. And please, call me Carrick," he said quietly, finally seeming to realize the damage his attitude was causing with his very sensitive future daughter in law.

I could see Christian was furious with his father. And I could understand why, as I saw the way Ana nervously knotted her fingers and stared down, clearly feeling very insecure because now she thought we saw her as a gold digger, which couldn't be further from the truth.

But the way Christian sought to reassure her was so kind and sweet, as he reached over to take both her hands in his. I couldn't hear exactly what he said, but I was sure he was telling her not to worry. Ana seemed to be arguing with him, and I cursed Carrick for putting doubts and worry into her head, when she already seemed to lack confidence. But in any case, Christian was adamantly having none of it.

"Stop. Stop now. This subject is closed, Ana. We're not discussing it any more. No prenup. Not now – not ever," I heard him declare, as he turned to me.

"Mom, can we have the wedding here?" he asked pointedly, as he glared at Carrick.

"Yes, darling, of course you can, if that's what you would both like, and if Ana's parents are agreeable too. We would be thrilled and delighted to have the wedding here, wouldn't we Carrick?" I insisted firmly, as I saw Carrick roll his eyes at me in defeat.

There was no way on this earth I was going to let the stubbornness of either my husband or my son prevent us from hosting the most wonderful wedding that I could possibly arrange for the young couple, and he knew it. He was either going to be with me on this, or he was going to be a very sad and lonely man.

_**A/N - I will be updating this story again in the not too distant future, to tie in with the chapters from Christian's pov on my blog. See my profile for details of how to access this story.**_

**_I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit. Please refer to the Legals page on my blog for further details of the intellectual property rights of this work._**


	7. Chapter 7 The Mother Of The Groom

The Mother of the Groom

Chapter 7

I was in seventh heaven when Christian asked if he and Ana could get married at our place, but I think most of my friends thought I was mad to agree to arrange their wedding within a month. However, the short timescale meant that we simply had to make all the choices and decisions quickly, based on what was available and what was possible, so I'd say in some ways it was actually easier than if we had six months or a year.

As we didn't have the luxury of taking months to decide on color themes and such like, it was fortuitous that Christian and Ana seemed to know what they wanted. They chose pale blush pink as their signature color, which I was delighted about because I knew from experience that such a soft pretty color, subtly intermingled with cream and silver, would effortlessly make everything look very beautiful and elegant. I also knew that this color theme would not present any kind of problem for the florists, which was perfect as I was planning on having gorgeous fresh flower arrangements absolutely everywhere.

It certainly helped that I found Ana such an easy to please girl regarding all the arrangements – she never demanded anything unreasonable or threw any kind of hissy fit about some minor detail. So it wasn't anywhere near as difficult to pull together as people might suppose, although I don't deny it was a lot of hard work. But I thoroughly enjoyed doing it, especially as I still had a couple of weeks annual leave owing to me, so I managed to get some time off work to allow me to throw myself wholeheartedly into all the arrangements.

Carrick had accepted that his son's marriage was going to go ahead with or without his approval, so rather than be left out and cause a horrid rift, he managed to put all his doubts and misgivings about them rushing into things to one side to fully come on board and help with all the arrangements, much to my relief.

But nevertheless, I still took the precaution of forbidding him from bringing up the controversial subject of the prenup again unless Christian came to him specifically asking for his advice on the matter, because he just had to accept that this was his son's choice. Carrick managed to comply with this, I think as much as anything because he hated the fact that Ana had now reverted to calling him Mr. Grey rather than Carrick, making him feel terribly guilty for unintentionally hurting shy little Ana's feelings. But the damage had been done, and he just had to hope that in time things would right themselves and she would feel more comfortable with him again.

Of course we were used to organizing our annual Coping Together fund raising ball, where we catered for a much larger number of people than would be attending the wedding, as the young couple had stipulated that only family and close friends were to be invited. The last fund raiser had only been a few weeks back, so we already knew the best firm to hire the marquee from and where it would be best to position it. We also knew the best caterers to employ, and what food would be most suitable, and as usual I left Carrick in charge of organizing all the drinks as this is his area of expertise.

My main concern was the weather. Everything would be so much better if it didn't rain, but of course in Seattle rain is always a strong possibility. So although we were planning to hold the wedding outside, Carrick and I had several contingency plans ready in case we had to move things indoors. In that eventuality, the marquee would be positioned right next to the house as a virtual extension. It would be a shame, as our preferred location was the far edge of our grounds, so that we could have one side of the marquee left open to make the most of the great view over the ocean, but if it was pouring with rain, there wouldn't be much of a view to be admired anyway.

I was so proud of the way our family all pulled together to get everything organized within such a tight timescale. Mia and Kate were marvelous as they took on the responsibility of helping Ana with her wedding dress and the bridesmaid's outfits. I hadn't appreciated that Kate's mother Diane was a very talented dress designer who ran her own very successful business, and Kate immediately contacted her to see if she would agree to design a dress for Ana at such short notice.

"Mom said she would be delighted to produce Ana's wedding dress, and she says she already has a design in mind that she thinks will be perfect for her," Kate announced when she was round for supper one evening with Elliot.

"That's wonderful, Kate. And is Ana happy with that?" I checked, just wondering if this had actually been run by her, having discovered how domineering Kate could be at times.

"Oh yes, she's very happy, because she gets on great with my mom. She spent part of last summer with me at my parents' place. That's how come she knows Ethan pretty well," she explained. "Mom's also more than happy to design our bridesmaid's dresses, Mia, so you must let me know when you're free to come for some consultations and fittings."

"Cool! I love the idea of our own individually designed dresses," Mia replied. "Mind you, if it was up to me, I would have chosen a different color, because I wore a pink dress to the Masked Ball."

"Oh, darling, no one will remember that, and pink really suits you, so you'll look lovely," I reassured my daughter. "And anyway, it's Ana's choice, so you'll just have to go along with it."

"I don't know about it being Ana's choice, more like Christian's" Kate muttered to Elliot. "He's such a control freak. Do you know, he's already called my mom on the pretext of telling her that money is no object so she could go ahead and only use the very best fabrics, but then acting as if that gave him the right to try and influence her design for Ana's dress? Of course she told him where to get off in no uncertain terms. I mean, since when does the groom get to choose the design of the bride's wedding dress?"

"So tell me Elliot, have you been working on your best man's speech?" I queried to change the subject as Elliot just shrugged in answer to Kate's little tirade. From the times I'd seen how they interacted, I'd already picked up that there seemed to be a clash of personalities between Kate and Christian, probably because they were both very protective of Ana in their own individual ways. I just hoped this would settle down between them, but right now I really didn't want to sit and listen to Kate criticizing my son right here in my own home.

"Sure have, Mom. I've got all sorts of great jokes and stories lined up ready - Christian's gonna love it," Elliot smirked.

"Nothing too risqué or embarrassing, I hope - I don't want you upsetting your brother. And don't forget Ana's parents are going to be there, as well as your grandparents. Perhaps you'd better get your father to read it through beforehand, just to be sure," I suggested, knowing my eldest son can rather juvenile with his sense of humor.

"No, trust me, it'll be fine. You worry too much, Mom. I just want to make sure it won't be dull or boring," he insisted in his usual laid back manner. But I decided in any case I would be having a word with my husband later, and strongly urging him to read and censor Elliot's speech if necessary,

Carrick was absent that evening because he was meeting up with Christian, Welch, Taylor and the rest of the security team our son now employed, to discuss all the security arrangements that would be required at our home for the wedding. I think he also wanted to find out more about the findings from the Eurocopter investigation, to know if they had worked out exactly why Christian's helicopter had crashed. Although he had been trying to hide it from me, I knew this had really been worrying him, especially as Christian had told us that he fully intended to start flying his helicopter again as soon as possible. I didn't dare let myself dwell on the implications if it turned out the engine malfunction was not down to a technical fault, so I buried my head in the sand as I kept myself busy with all the wedding preparations. But unfortunately security issues kept cropping up.

It was through 'Coping Together' that I had gotten to know Reverend Walsh. I had always found him to be a really lovely man, always so friendly and helpful, so I suggested him to Christian and Ana as a suitable minister to perform their wedding ceremony, as they both freely admitted they hadn't got a clue about who to approach. Bruce Walsh had happily agreed, and had even generously offered to donate his service fee to 'Coping Together'.

So it came as somewhat of a shock to me when Carrick said I had to hold off getting the wedding invitations printed, because it was necessary for Reverend Walsh to pass all the detailed background checks the security team deemed necessary before it could be confirmed that he would be the officiant performing the ceremony.

"Is that really necessary?" I queried.

"Just because he's a man of the cloth does not mean he's immune to bribery and corruption, Grace. People aren't always what they seem. You read the newspapers, so you've read for yourself how anything is possible with regard to politicians, law officers and even church ministers. So sad as it is, I'm afraid I have to agree the security team is right to be cautious," Carrick insisted. I had the distinct impression that there was more to this that he was letting on, but I let it pass. I didn't want to have to think about such unpleasant matters at what should be such a happy time in the lead up to our son's wedding.

"Do you know Ana's parents very well?" I asked Kate. Ana's mother Carla, her current husband Bob, and her ex husband Ray were all coming for the wedding rehearsal the day before the big event, and for the dinner that we were hosting afterwards. I'd invited them all to stay with us rather than go to a hotel, but I couldn't deny that I was feeling a little anxious about how the two men were going to get along. It all sounded rather complicated, especially as it turned out that Ana's mother had been married a total of four times.

"I've met Ray quite a few times over the years since Ana and I became friends, so I know him pretty well. He may be Ana's stepdad, but he's pretty much the only father she's ever known, as her biological father died right after she was born, so she never knew him. And Ray's a real sweetie. He doesn't say much, he's one of those ex military, strong, silent types, but I know he thinks the world of Ana and would do anything for her. I don't know her mom so well, but I have met her a few times, and she's very nice too, even if she seems a bit scatty sometimes. I haven't met her latest husband, but Ana seems to think he's okay, and that her mom is happy with him," Kate filled me in.

I hadn't wanted to seem too inquisitive by asking Ana lots of probing questions, but I couldn't deny that I felt much happier now that I had a little more background information. In any case, as hosts Carrick and I would be doing our utmost to make our future daughter-in-law's family feel welcome and included in all the proceedings.

I needn't have worried myself about Ana's family, because everyone got on just fine both at the rehearsal and the dinner afterwards. Ana's mother Carla was a vivacious, bubbly lady and I liked her very much, and her husband Bob was a very amenable and pleasant man too. Kate was right about Ana's stepfather Ray – he didn't say very much, but I noticed that he watched Ana closely a lot of the time. Of course Carla and I both got very emotional at the wedding rehearsal, although I don't think I was quite as bad as she was, and I dreaded to think what we were both going to be like at the actual wedding.

"Oh my baby girl," Carla kept wailing, as Bob did his best to comfort her. "My beautiful little girl. If only her father were alive to see her now."

My mother was in her element, of course, she loved being included and meeting everyone, and my father was on top form making jokes at her expense. They really were like an old fashioned double act at times. But at least my mother was very good at making Carla feel welcome, which I appreciated.

My heart had been bursting with joy as I'd watched Christian and Ana going through their paces at the rehearsal, smiling at each other, so happy and so in love. I hadn't had much opportunity to speak to him other than to run various arrangements by him for his approval, as my workaholic son had been frantically busy organizing everything with his business matters so that they could have an extended honeymoon. I was delighted that Christian was actually taking a proper vacation, as I couldn't remember the last time he had – not since he'd set up his company probably. And we were touched that Christian secretly asked our advice about the best places to visit, because he remembered that Carrick and I had spent our honeymoon in Europe. We were under strict instructions not to breathe a word about his plans to anyone, especially Ana of course, because he wanted to surprise her, which was so sweet of him. I was really happy to see Carrick discussing various art galleries with Christian that might be worth a visit in the South of France, pleased that they seemed to be getting on better again. They've always had a rather fraught relationship – Carrick thinking he knows what's best for our son, Christian rebelling against him - but I know that doesn't mean they don't care deeply for each other.

Christian has been insistent all along that he wanted everything for his wedding to be done in the time honored traditional way. So I reminded him of this when I turned down his request to stay the night here at Bellevue with Ana, the night before their wedding, after the rehearsal dinner. I'd not had a problem with them sharing a room when they'd stayed the night after his birthday party, because ever since I'd practically walked in on them the first time I'd met Ana, I obviously knew they slept together, and quite frankly I was so delighted by this turn of events with the son I'd feared would never have that kind of relationship that I was hardly going to insist they slept in separate rooms when they stayed over that time.

But tradition decrees that it's bad luck for the groom to see his bride on the actual wedding day before the ceremony – he has to wait to see her walking up the aisle to him. I think this is probably a throwback to the days of arranged marriages, when the groom hadn't even met his bride beforehand. The worry for the father who was trying to marry his daughter off was that the groom might not to turn up, if he found out in advance that his bride was hideously ugly, when he'd been told that she was beautiful. I think that may also be part of the reason why the bride's face was covered with a heavy veil too!

Christian was not at all happy about having to leave at the end of the evening, and he lingered in the hallway talking to Ana, putting off the moment of parting. I nearly quoted some Shakespeare at them.

_'Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow, that I shall say good night till it be morrow'_

But instead Carla and I just teased them, and practically threw Christian out – he was just going to have to manage without his darling girl for one night. I knew it would make that first moment when he saw her walking to him more special, and he would thank me later. But the dreadful scowl on his face as he left was priceless, and reminded me of when he was a small boy and couldn't get his own way.

I knew the forecast for the day of the wedding was for dry and sunny weather, but I didn't dare believe it until I woke on the morning, and threw back the drapes to see a perfectly clear blue sky.

"Good lord, are they some of Christian's security men I can see out there with Taylor already? There are so many of them," I exclaimed as I looked out over the grounds. There appeared to be at least half a dozen men with him.

Carrick came and looked out of the window over my shoulder.

"Yes, they'll be making regular sweeps throughout the day, but please don't draw attention to them, Grace. Christian doesn't want Ana worried by their presence, so they'll be keeping as low a profile as possible."

"Is all this really necessary? I mean I know the paparazzi have been pursuing them relentlessly ever since news of the wedding got out, but now that Christian's agreed to release some of their wedding photos in return for donations to the charities he's nominated for them to choose from, I thought they'd backed right off," I said.

"It's just a sensible precaution, that's all," he replied rather evasively.

"What are you not telling me, Carrick? This all seems way over the top, because the level of security is even tighter than it was for the Masked Ball," I remarked suspiciously.

"Nothing, nothing, Gracie. Now come on, I think we need to get a move on, there's a lot to be done," he insisted, so I let the matter drop for now.

The morning passed in a flurry of hairdressers, beauticians, florists, caterers and also photographers coming and going. As two very private people who really hated the way nosy photographers had been trying to invade their space recently, Ana and Christian had decided that although they obviously wanted lots of beautiful wedding photos of their special day, they didn't want the atmosphere ruined by a photographer dictating to them where to stand and how to act, or holding up the proceedings in any way while he re-took shots.

So in the end they asked Ana's friend José, who was apparently a very talented amateur photographer, to take as many shots as he could during the course of the day, as well as hiring a professional photography team recommended by Kate's mother, who were renowned for quietly merging in and taking much more natural pictures rather than formal poses. I was very happy with this arrangement, having been to some weddings where it almost felt as times as if the intrusive photographer was running the whole show.

In my opinion, the whole focus of the day should remain firmly on the couple declaring their love for each other as they make their vows in front of their friends and family, rather than worrying about camera angles and great shots. And anyway, Christian and Anastasia make such a beautiful couple that I was sure any pictures of them couldn't fail to be anything less than stunning.

Ana's dress had been delivered to our house the day before by Kate's mother, under wraps and practically under armed guard as well. She informed me that in her business, she has to operate under the most secretive conditions for her clients, as if pictures of her gown designs are leaked out in advance of being worn they can fetch huge sums of money, which with her husband being head of the mighty Kavanagh Media, she would no doubt be only too aware of.

"There have even been attempts to hack into my computer systems recently, but as my husband has always strongly advised me to have the very highest level of security encryption for all the systems at Kavanagh Designs, no one has yet succeeded." Diane informed me.

"Goodness, it sounds as if you work at Fort Knox rather than in the fashion industry," I exclaimed.

So far none of us had been privy to the wedding dress design – so we were all itching to see the creation. I'd been allowed to see the bridesmaid dresses, but only under strict instruction not to breathe a word about them to anyone, but they were gorgeous and I knew both girls were going to look wonderful in them. Mia and Kate had also helped me to choose my outfit. I'm always looking for any excuse to wear a big hat, so naturally I indulged myself for the wedding. But Carrick made me promise to only wear it for the ceremony as he thought it would be in the way after that, so I compromised by having a different evening outfit to change into for later.

Carrick, Elliot and Ray were all going to be wearing pale pink vests under their tuxedos, while Christian was wearing a silver vest under his. As part of his best man duties, Elliot collected Christian in the morning from his apartment and brought him over to Bellevue, under strict instructions not to let him arrive too ridiculously early. At least my son was obviously very keen to marry his sweetheart, with no chance whatsoever that he would fail to turn up, however much Elliot may have joked about it.

I think Elliot was still rather miffed that he hadn't been able to persuade his brother to have the whole Las Vegas bachelor party experience, but I for one was glad, because these events often end up getting out of hand, especially when large amounts of free flowing alcohol are involved. But of course I'd been safe in the knowledge that Christian would never have agreed to it however hard Elliot tried to twist his arm - he should know by now that no one can make Christian do anything he doesn't want to. I'd just worried that Elliot might have been tempted to go ahead and fly down to Vegas to party on his behalf anyway, as he'd already drawn young Ethan Kavanagh into his plans, much to Mia's displeasure – I think she is definitely sweet on him, and I also think she probably has a very jealous streak, much like her brother Christian. So the thought of Ethan at a strippers show would probably not have pleased her one bit.

I'd tried to find out from Mia what the state of play was between her and Ethan, but unusually she refused to be drawn very much – which is what convinced me that she did like him.

"Sure, I like him, Mom. But he keeps blowing hot and cold, so I don't know what's going on, and I've decided I won't be messed around," she announced.

But I thought that when Ethan saw her looking so gorgeous in her lovely bridesmaid dress, he would find it hard not to be won over if he was feeling any reluctance, and I was sure that thought was also going through my daughter's mind too. I might be biased I suppose, but my daughter is a very beautiful young woman – and one who most surely knows how to work it as well.

We left the men to it downstairs, as the women busied themselves with all the required preparations and beauty procedures upstairs. I saw Ana checking her cell and smiling, so I knew I didn't need to tell her when her fiancé had arrived. Franco the hairdresser had brought two of his assistants to help with everyone's hair, but he concentrated on putting Ana's hair into an elaborate up-do, seeming to have a very clear idea of exactly what would suit her. I have to say that he was certainly very talented, because when he'd finished she looked amazing, and I hugged myself to think of Christian's face when he saw his stunning bride. Ana kept looking in the mirror as if she couldn't quite believe it was her reflection she could see – I imagined that she hadn't got dressed up like this very often in her previous student life.

My mother was lending Ana a silver filigree hair comb to secure her veil – the same one that she had worn on her wedding day. I had also worn it for my wedding to Carrick as my 'something borrowed' so I was delighted that Ana would now be borrowing it to carry on the Trevelyan tradition.

"I think it's important to keep the old ways alive," my mother had declared when she'd taken us upstairs to her bedroom to get the hair comb and present it to Ana. I'd offered to drive her over to visit my parents one evening in the week before the wedding when Christian had been tied up with work, but he'd insisted that Ana's protection officer should drive us over - much like Taylor, he was another man of few words called Sawyer. At least that gave us girls more of a chance to chat as we sat in the back of the car together. I'd thought she'd probably feel more comfortable if I was there to help shield her from my mother's rather over exuberant enthusiasm for their wedding, and it was nice for me to have some one on one time with my future daughter-in-law away from my protective son. I'd found Ana to be totally delightful as we happily chatted about all the final wedding arrangements.

"It's beautiful, and I'm really honored that you would allow me to wear it, Mrs. Trevelyan," Ana had said sincerely as she took the precious gift, obviously very touched by the gesture.

"I think you should call me Grandma, don't you? After all, we're going to be family now. And talking of families, I really don't think it's going to be long before we hear the pitter patter of tiny feet. You mark my words, this time next year…" my mother had winked at Ana, who had then proceeded to blush a very deep shade of red.

"Mother! For goodness sake, stop embarrassing the poor girl," I'd reprimanded her.

She really was shameless about her wish to see some great-grandchildren, and of course secretly I desperately shared her desire to hold a new born baby of theirs in my arms. But as they were not even married yet, I told myself to be patient and hope that this was something we had to look forward to in the future.

In any case I was really looking forward to seeing Anastasia wearing the hair comb that Mom lent her, knowing that it created a unique bond that we three ladies would always share.

The wedding had been set for quite early in the day – partly at Christian's suggestion that it made sense to fit in with his plans to whisk Ana off for their secret honeymoon, and partly because my impatient son couldn't see the point in hanging around waiting all day to get on with the business of getting married. Of course it was all right for him; he never had to spend very long on his grooming because he always looked so very handsome. It was quite another matter for most of the ladies.

But finally everyone was ready, and so we started gathering outside with all the guests. I know Ray was nervous about his role in all the proceedings, but Carrick had tried his best to reassure him that everything had been kept very simple and straight forward, so there really wasn't anything that could go too far wrong.

"And Ray, don't worry about having to give a long drawn out speech at the reception. Just speak from the heart; no one will think any the less of you if you just keep it short and sweet – in fact everyone will probably thank you," Carrick had said to try and put him at his ease. We both really liked Ray's quiet, understated personality, and just wanted him to relax enough to actually enjoy his only daughter's wedding day.

My heart swelled and nearly burst with pride as I saw my two wonderful sons waiting at the front with Reverend Walsh, looking so smart in their wedding outfits.

"Nice hat, Mom. Careful you don't take someone's eye out with it," Elliot joked, as I swatted him.

Then I looked at Christian.

"You look very dashing and handsome. I'm so proud of you, Christian. Ana's a very lucky girl," I whispered emotionally, as I reached up to caress his cheek.

"No, Mom. I'm the lucky one," he replied, as he kissed my cheek in return.

My darling boy. For so long I had been so sad, because I thought this day would never come for him, as I'd assumed he would never marry. Yet here he was, deeply in love and about to be wed. After everything he had gone through, finally he was learning to open up his heart and let us love him, because of the healing love he'd found with Anastasia. I thanked God every day for arranging the chance meeting that had rescued him from the undoubted pit of loneliness he'd existed in until then, despite our best efforts.

And I refused to even think about _that _woman today and the harm the evil bitch had inflicted upon him. Today was all about new beginnings and looking forward, and I wasn't going to let anything or anyone spoil it. I knew Carrick's conscience had obliged him to undertake some discrete enquiries to ensure she wasn't involved in any way with a minor, because he'd never have forgiven himself if he had allowed an illegal situation involving a pedophile like her to continue when he could have intervened to put a stop to it. It disgusted both of us to learn that the whore was involved with a young man virtually half her age – Christian's age more or less – but however distasteful we found it, there was nothing illegal in their relationship.

So now I focused on the happy event that was about to unfold in front of me. Carla was already crying, of course, and I had my hanky at the ready, because I could also feel the tears welling. Carrick looked at me, gripped my hand and smiled, with no need of words. We were both remembering the day we made our vows, and despite some inevitable ups and downs, I've never once regretted marrying Carrick, and I knew he felt exactly the same way about me. We have been truly blessed in our marriage, and our fervent wish was that Christian and Ana were equally blessed in theirs.

Then we heard the music start, so everybody stood and looked towards the back, waiting for Ana to make her entrance on her proud father's arm. The music they'd chosen was the piano and cello rendition of 'A Thousand Years' and it was so beautiful and evocative that the tears I'd been trying to hold back already started to flow. And then we all saw Anastasia, and I heard a collective gasp as she made her way up the aisle because she looked so very beautiful in her exquisite wedding dress, which was a simple, fitted, off the shoulder design made from a gorgeous pale ivory lace , with a matching lace veil flowing behind with the train of her dress. Mia and Kate followed her, both looking so pretty in their pale blush pink dresses, and I noticed Elliot and Ethan both staring at the girls. _More weddings to come perhaps?_

Ana looked rather nervous until the second she locked eyes with Christian, then I saw her smile and relax. And from that moment on, it was obvious they only had eyes for each other, which was just as it should be for a young couple about to profess their love and lifelong commitment to each other. Ray's hand trembled as he passed Ana's hand over to Christian, and I thought how hard it must be for him to be literally giving his daughter away, especially as he was all on his own with no partner, and I resolved to make sure we didn't leave him out, that we always included him in our family gatherings whenever it was possible.

I knew there had been some sort of controversy about the wedding vows between Christian and Ana, but whatever had happened, they'd obviously resolved it and the outcome was that they both expressed the most heartfelt sentiments and said the most beautiful words to each other. The tears were streaming down my cheeks by now as I tried to discretely dab them with my hanky, while Carla was practically bawling her eyes out.

Christian's voice was so sincere as he quietly but confidently spoke out.

_"I solemnly vow that I will safeguard and hold dear and deep in my heart our union and you._

_I promise to love you faithfully, forsaking all others, through the good times and the bad, in sickness or in health, regardless of where life takes us._

_I will protect you, trust you, and respect you._

_I will share your joys and sorrows and comfort you in times of need._

_I promise to cherish you and uphold your hopes and dreams and keep you safe at my side._

_All that is mine is now yours._

_I give you my hand, my heart, and my love from this moment on for as long as we both shall live."_

Ana's voice was a lot quieter, but she didn't falter or hesitate with her vows either.

_"I give you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, to stand by your side in good times and in bad, to share your joy as well as your sorrow._

_I promise to love you unconditionally, to support you in your goals and dreams, to honor and respect you, to laugh with you and cry with you, to share my hopes and dreams with you, and bring you solace in times of need._

_And to cherish you for as long as we both shall live."_

I don't think there was a dry eye in the house by the time they had exchanged their wedding rings – Carrick pretended to have something in his eye, of course. Men! What's wrong with showing some emotion?

"I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride," Reverend Walsh finally declared with a big smile.

They kissed, and then gazed into each other's eyes, so very much in love, and I found myself offering up a little prayer to Ella, sure that she would be looking down on her son at undoubtedly the happiest moment of his life so far.

And so we moved on to the reception to celebrate their wedding, and I have to say that everything in the marquee looked fantastic, even if I do say so myself. The blush pink theme had worked out beautifully, just as I'd hoped it would. The florists had excelled themselves, and there were pale pink and ivory roses everywhere, that matched the roses in Ana's gorgeous bouquet.

Christian and Ana both dutifully circulated round to speak to all their guests, sometimes together, sometimes apart, but never separated for very long. Then we sat while the food was served, and I was relieved that it was all excellent – you can never be sure how things will actually turn out on the day, however much planning goes into it. Christian ate like a horse of course because he always does, but I noticed that Ana just picked at her food, I expect because she was just too excited to have much of an appetite.

The speeches passed off without incident – Ray made a very touching speech about how special and precious his daughter was to him, but how he felt that in Christian she had found a worthy partner to share her life with. Of course Carla and I ended up in tears again, and Ana got very emotional too, as she hugged her dad. I was relieved that Elliot managed to get the balance of his speech just about right, with a few little jokes at his brother's expense, but nothing too bad, and afterwards I saw the two boys have a manhug that involved a lot of back slapping. I think I might even have heard Christian whisper '_Thanks Lelliot_," which was how he used to pronounce his brother's name when he was a little boy.

After the meal it was time for some dancing, and again the young couple were very good and made sure they danced with other people as well as each other. Naturally I made sure I grabbed a dance with my son.

"Happy?" I asked him as I smiled up at him, knowing it was a rhetorical question.

"You have to ask, Mom? I'm the luckiest man on the planet right now, because of my wonderful new wife," he beamed back at me. The pride in his voice as he referred to his _wife_ was so sweet to hear.

"Yes, Ana is a very lovely girl - I'm so delighted that you two found each other, and I couldn't be happier to hand you over to her. But I will always be here for you, and I will always love you, no matter what, Christian. Never forget that. I will never stop being your mother, and a mother's love is unconditional." I wanted us to draw a line under the whole business with _that_ woman, because I didn't want it to come between us, however hurt I had been by it.

"Thanks, Mom. That's means a lot to me," he whispered and smiled again. I loved seeing him smile so much, but even better, as the music came to an end, he gave me a big hug a well, and I was thrilled. I loved seeing my son so happy and relaxed in this way.

While I had been dancing with Christian, Carrick had been dancing with Ana, and I knew he was trying his best to put her at her ease and smooth things over between them again. I fervently hoped he would succeed, because this girl was part of our family now. I had faith that Ana would see how sincere my husband was in his wish to make her feel that he regarded her as his new daughter. I suppose we just had to give it time – everything had happened so quickly after all.

Finally the young couple announced that they were leaving – I think a joint effort from the grandparents to coerce them into starting a family right away proved to be the final straw for Christian's tolerance, and understandably he wanted to have Ana all to himself. Unusually, Ana remained in her wedding dress as they prepared to leave.

"Christian doesn't want me too," she just shrugged at her mother and Kate when they queried why she wasn't changing into her going away outfit as had been planned. Kate muttered something about her not promising to obey Christian, but I thought it was lovely that Ana wanted to please him, rather than conforming to what her friend thought she should do. It was _their_ wedding day after all, which I felt Kate needed to remember.

My son hadn't been able take his eyes of Ana in her wonderful dress, so it was obvious that he liked it very much indeed. I'd noticed that under the top layer of lace, the dress beneath was made of beautiful silk. I remembered how, as a boy, he'd always loved touching and feeling silky fabrics, although I'd always been careful not to draw attention to this for fear of making him self-conscious about it, if I saw him touching one of my silk scarves for example. I also remembered how when we first adopted Christian, he used to suck his thumb as he fingered the silky edge of his comforter blanket – his blankie.

So if he wanted Ana to remain in her silk gown, if he wanted to have the pleasure of holding her and touching her while she was wearing his favorite fabric, then I thought that was an excellent reason for her to continue to wear her dress for as long as possible on their wedding day, and I was glad that she was happy to do this for him.

So finally we had to let the young couple leave for their honeymoon, but not before all the guests had been gathered up to make a human arch for them to go through, as we showered them with rice. As was traditional, Ana tossed her bouquet, and Mia suddenly appeared from nowhere to catch it, effortlessly beating all the other contestants.

Tradition dictates that whoever catches the bouquet is going to be the next bride, but somehow I doubted that would be my daughter, even though I suspected she was pretty keen on Ethan Kavanagh. Whatever was going on between those two, I'd seen the looks they'd been exchanging all day, even if they had been keeping their distance. But if I had to put my money on who was most likely to get married next, I'd have to say it would Elliot and Kate. She seemed to have tamed my erstwhile playboy son, and they were very loved up. Perhaps the services of Diane Kavanagh would be called upon to design another wedding dress in the near future?

I pushed these musings to the back of my mind, and concentrated on making my farewells. Then the happy couple was gone, as Taylor drove them away, headed for the airport and the trip of a lifetime.

**_Look on my profile for details of how to access my blogs to read this story with illustrations and also to read 'Meet Fifty Shades Continued'._**

**_I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit. Please refer to the Legal's page for further details._**


	8. Chapter 8 - THE GIRL TALK

Chapter 8

The Girl Talk

I couldn't wait to see Christian and Ana to hear all about their extended honeymoon, so I arranged a welcome home family barbecue for Sunday, the day after they got back from their honeymoon, and before they went back to work.

I'd really missed them, and I had to admit that I was also quite anxious to check that everything had gone smoothly for the young couple, knowing how challenging Christian can be, how intense and overwhelming he might be for Anastasia to cope with at times, especially as they haven't known each other that long, and she is only a young girl of twenty one after all.

When they arrived, they certainly looked tanned and very well, although Ana seemed rather preoccupied as Christian talked about all the places they had visited. Perhaps she was a little sad at having to come back to the real world after what sounded like a dream honeymoon.

Listening to them brought back so many happy memories of our honeymoon, and I wistfully wondered where all the years had gone. It made me think that now the kids were grown up, maybe Carrick and I should think about having a second honeymoon in Europe. When I voiced my thoughts out loud, it was obvious from the look on the boy's faces that they clearly thought we were far too ancient to be thinking about such things. However, I was well aware that it was very easy to become lazy and complacent, and that you have to work to keep the romance alive in a marriage, especially after all these years.

Then Elliot started talking to Christian about the renovation work for the new house he's bought - it always gladdens my heart to see my two sons both socializing and also collaborating on projects. Despite their banter and the vast differences in their respective personalities, it's obvious they have great respect for each other, and trust each other's judgment. I believe Christian has given Elliot some very sound financial advice to ensure his construction business continues to thrive and expand, while the various renovation projects that Elliot has handled have always been completed on time and to his brother's very exacting standards.

With Christian's okay, Elliot had shown us around the new property while they were away on their honeymoon. I must say I was thrilled that Christian had acquired what was to all intents and purposes a _family_ home for them, right here in the neighborhood. I hoped that it was an indication that one day at least, they planned to have children. I thought it would make a beautiful home, with a wonderful view, and in an ideal location – not too far away from the grandparents who would be only too willing to do more than their fair share of babysitting duties when the time eventually came.

Whenever we have a barbeque, I always let Carrick deal with it, because it's man's work, according to him. So Mia and I were more than happy to leave him to it, while we concentrated our efforts on preparing all the salads and other accompaniments. Mind you, at Mia's suggestion we'd invited young Ethan Kavanagh along too, so she was rather more distracted than usual.

I could tell that she had taken a lot of trouble with her appearance to ensure that she looked casually gorgeous in her tight jeans and skimpy top, and Ethan's eyes followed her round the whole time. And yet he still kept his distance from her, which probably made Mia all the more determined in her efforts to capture his attention. I couldn't work out what was going on between them, so I decided I'd have to try and get to the bottom of things when I got a chance to talk to my daughter alone at some point later.

It was hard to take my husband seriously as he carried out his real man duties at the barbeque, because he was wearing the chef's hat and James Bond 'Licensed to Grill' apron that Mia had given him for his last birthday. She's always teased her father that he looks very similar to one of the actors who used to play James Bond, hence her gift of the appropriately themed apron.

I noticed that Ana found it hard not to giggle every time she looked at the way the silly hat precariously wobbled on his head as he slaved over the hot barbeque, and I was pleased to see her slightly more relaxed around him. Hopefully, in time things would get back to a more comfortable footing between them, which I knew was what Carrick desperately hoped for, as he'd never intended to upset his daughter-in-law with the whole prenup debacle. Poor man, his heart was in the right place and he meant well, so perhaps he'd learned his lesson to be more tactful around her in future, although being a typical forthright male, I didn't hold out too much hope of that.

Luckily the decent weather held just long enough for us to finish our food before the heavens opened and it started to rain, sending us all scurrying indoors. As everyone sat around, just casually chatting and relaxing in the wonderful way that families do, I saw Christian heading for my piano. That meant he was either very relaxed and happy, or very troubled and in torment, because I knew these extremes of mood were when the call of music was greatest for my complex son. I hoped it was the former, but no doubt his choice of music once he started playing properly rather than tinkering around would give us the best indication of his mood.

While Christian was otherwise occupied, I made a point of going over and sitting with Ana, because I wanted to let her to know that although I had no intention of being an overbearing or interfering mother-in-law, I would always be more than happy to provide a shoulder for her to lean on, or a listening ear if she needed it, seeing as her own mother lived so far away.

"Sounds as if you had a wonderful time on your honeymoon, my dear. What was your favorite from all those wonderful places you visited?" I asked, as I smiled warmly at her.

"Oh, it's far too difficult to single anywhere out, because I loved every place we went to, for all sorts of different reasons. I'm very lucky, because Christian really spoiled me," she said, her eyes instantly drawn over to him, as her obvious love shone out.

"Did my workaholic son actually manage to relax and unwind to leave work behind him?" I queried.

"Oh, he still worked every day," Ana laughed. "Didn't matter where we were in the world, he still checked into the office. But that was okay. That's Christian. I can't expect him to completely change the way he is, can I? And he made sure we still did so many wonderful things that I really didn't mind if he needed some time to himself to work for a while each day," she explained.

"Maybe it was also nice to have a little time for yourself as well?" I gently probed.

Ana looked slightly shocked, as yet again her eyes shot over to her new husband.

"I suppose, so, yes," she quietly admitted.

"It's just I understand how very intense and demanding my son can be at times," I said very quietly, as I looked her straight in the eye, to try and convey that she could trust me with any concerns or worries she may have had, without fear that it would be taken as a criticism of my son.

"Yes, you could say that," Ana murmured. "Inevitably we did have a few ups and downs. I guess it takes some time to get used to be married."

"That's perfectly natural, and let me tell you that Carrick and I still have our ups and downs, even after all these years. So, yes, being married certainly does take some getting used to, no doubt about that. But I'm sure you'll both be fine, you'll get there."

"Yes, I'm sure we will," Ana smiled back at me.

"Ana, I was wondering, would you consider doing me a favor?" I asked her next.

"Of course. Anything, just ask."

"Look, I know Christian has opened up to you about his difficult childhood, and the profound effect it had on him, and I can't tell you how delighted I am that he has. But I'm sure I don't need to tell you how hard it is to get any kind of personal information out of Christian, and I can't help it, silly old woman that I am, I still worry about him. So what I wondered was, because you have brought about such a wonderful transformation in him, I would really like it if we could keep in close touch, maybe meet up for lunch, say once a week? Just the two of us, so you can reassure this old mother hen about her son? And if there was anything you felt you needed to know, then I'd be more than happy if you felt I might be able to help in any way."

"Sure, I'd really like that. I'd never want you to feel I'd somehow come between you and your son, Grace. I know Christian thinks the absolute world of you, that you were his savior who rescued him," Ana replied earnestly.

"No, my dear, you are the savior, you have rescued him from a lifetime of loneliness and solitude, and for that, I will never be able to thank you enough," I said, as I gripped her hand.

Just then, I realized that apart from the music playing on the piano, I could hear singing. As I looked up, I saw that I wasn't the only one who'd noticed. Everyone in the room was staring in the same direction.

Because it was Christian who was singing.

'_I'll go wherever you will go,_

_Way up high or down low,_

_I'll go wherever you will go'._

Of course, as soon as he realized that he had become the centre of attention, Christian frowned, then stopped playing and singing.

"Go on. I've never heard you sing, Christian. Ever," I whispered as I stared in wonder at my son, but it seemed the moment had passed for him. He closed the piano and walked away, as Ana went over and joined him.

I used to sing to the children all the time when they were small, which although Christian seemed to really enjoy, he never once joined in. So, despite the fact that he is a very gifted musician, I'd never, ever actually heard him sing out loud before.

But now, because of the wonderful healing love he had found with Anastasia, he'd finally found his beautiful singing voice, and I was certain that his soul would be all the better for finding this way of allowing his true musical nature to run free.

I couldn't help myself. I was so overcome with emotion that I knew I was about to burst into tears. So I made an excuse about making some tea for everyone and then hastily made my escape to the kitchen, where Carrick followed me out, having seen my reaction.

"Our boy was singing, Cary. Actually singing out loud," I blubbed into my hanky. "That shows how happy he is, how happy Ana has made him."

"I know, my love. There's such a transformation in him; it's wonderful to see, isn't it?" he agreed, as he put his arms around me and gave me a big hug.

"I know you think I'm soppy, but I really think Christian was destined to meet Ana for her to change his life, because however much love we tried to give him, we could never reach him the way she has, could we?"

"No, we couldn't, but it wasn't for lack of trying, certainly on your part, Grace."

"Or yours, Carrick. I think it was even harder for you, because Christian always had such an issue dealing with male adults due to the abuse he'd suffered. But you never gave up, did you?"

"Of course not. Christian's our son. So however difficult and challenging he's been at times, I knew that he was also extremely vulnerable, and unquestionably in need of strong, unconditional love from us, even if it had to be tough love at times."

"But I still feel we must have got something badly wrong for Christian to have been with…_that_ woman…for so long, and for us not to have had the slightest inkling. I'm his mother; I should have sensed something wasn't right, shouldn't I?" I felt so guilty, to think what had been going on right under our noses, when we should have been protecting him.

"That was unquestionably down to how manipulative and evil that predatory paedophile bitch Elena Lincoln was, pretending to be your friend, while all the while taking advantage of your good nature to enable her to prey on our son's weaknesses. You couldn't possibly have known what she was really like. You mustn't blame yourself, because don't forget that hindsight is a wonderful thing."

"Christian said that Ana has always hated Elena. She somehow instinctively sensed that she was pure evil. That evil bitch didn't manage to pull the wool over her eyes," I pointed out.

"Perhaps because Ana was coming from a different place to you, perhaps because Christian told Ana a lot more than he ever told us. Therefore, Ana was better informed to make a more accurate assessment."

"Perhaps. But I'm so thankful that our daughter-in-law has been such a positive influence to counteract all the harm that harlot has inflicted on Christian. Thank God for Ana," I stated fervently.

"Amen to that," Carrick agreed.

When Ana arrived for the lunch date we arranged for the following week, in a convenient restaurant not too far from the hospital where I was at work, she was escorted by a tall Afro-American female.

"Grace, this is Prescott, my personal CPO. We will also be joined by Sawyer, whom you've already met, once he's parked the car," Ana explained, as she sighed. "Sorry to be so formal, but I get told off if I use their first names. Apparently it's not very professional of me."

"Ma'am," Prescott nodded to me, as she scanned the room and then sat herself down at a table just across the way from us. I knew Carrick had been talking to Christian about increasing security for all the family, but even so I was surprised that he felt it necessary for Ana to have two members of his team to escort her. I put it down to the fact that he clearly he felt very protective of his new wife.

"So, have you settled back in at work okay after your honeymoon?" I asked, while we both glanced at the menu.

"Yes, although it's hard, after such a long break, and with all the changes at work. But please don't tell Christian I said that. He'd love nothing better than for me to stay at home all day and twiddle my thumbs, but I've told him I'd die of boredom," Ana whispered, as she glanced over nervously at Prescott, as Sawyer walked in and joined her to sit at their table.

"Your secret is safe with me," I whispered back, as I smiled in sympathy, thinking it must be driving the poor girl mad having her privacy invaded this way, worried that every word she said would be reported back to her husband. She was clearly discovering all the negatives of being a billionaire's wife, to balance out the advantages of being incredibly wealthy.

Once we'd placed our orders, having both chosen just a light chicken salad, I sat back and spoke quietly.

"Ana, I'm sure you've worked out for yourself why Christian is so overprotective, seeing as he had the good sense to confide in you about his traumatic childhood."

"As I understand it, he feels tremendous guilt that he couldn't protect his birth mother, but he also experiences conflicting anger and abandonment issues. He had a terrible start in life, didn't he? I guess it really is no wonder that he sometimes suffers from such terrible nightmares."

"He still has those then?" I sighed, remembering how he used to wake up screaming in terror night after night when we first adopted him.

"Yes, just now and again, especially if we…if there is any kind of dispute between us. In these nightmares, all kinds of irrational fears about my safety seem to surface. So I'm trying to tolerate his over protectiveness to a degree, but I can't deny that I don't always find it easy. I still need to be me after all."

"Of course you do, my dear," I sympathized. Our food arrived, and as we started on our lunch, I decided I had to broach the subject that was uppermost on my mind.

"Ana, I'm sorry to bring the subject up, but I need to ask if you are aware if Christian has heard from _that_ woman again. Because if she is still playing any kind of mind games with him…"

"As far as I know, he hasn't heard from that bitch again. Trust me, Grace, if I found out that she was trying to wheedle her way back into his life again, I would be the one giving her another well deserved bitch slapping," Ana stated, with strong conviction.

"You had her number right from the very beginning, didn't you?" I said admiringly. "Yet I let that she-devil hide in the very bosom of our family. I let her groom my teenage son with her sick pedophile ways, right under my nose, for six whole years. What kind of a mother must you think I am?"

"I think you are a wonderful, loving mother, who chose to see the good in someone, rather than believe such evil was possible from someone who purported to be a good friend. And knowing a bit about Christian's nature, I'm sure he was pretty much a closed book, an expert at keeping secrets from everyone, however much you encouraged him to be open with you. So I know you did the best you could with a very difficult young man, and I know Christian feels very guilty for all the pain he's put you through. The whole Elena affair was not your fault Grace. She's a very clever and evil manipulative bitch, and I'm just glad she finally showed her true colors to him. She claimed she wanted to help us, but I just sensed her motives were anything but helpful, however much Christian initially defended her."

"So she tried to manipulate you too?"

"Oh yes. Even after Christian had told her to back off several times, she still kept trying to see me behind his back, but it misfired on her in the end, because I just kept forwarding her letters and emails to Christian for him to deal with. And you can imagine how much he liked her going against his express wishes."

"I wish I'd pieced it all together sooner. I knew she was acting rather bizarrely, but I couldn't figure out why she apparently disapproved of Christian's relationship with you so strongly. I just dismissed it because I thought it was none of her business, but now I can see quite clearly that she was jealous of you, because she knew you were a real threat to her, to her influence over Christian. I'm so very sorry, Ana. Things should never have been allowed to get to that stage. Considering Carrick's a lawyer and I'm a doctor, we should have been able to see her for what she was a lot sooner than we did."

" You can't go blaming yourselves, Grace. I hold _her_ totally to blame for the whole thing. So have you seen her at all?"

"Good God, no. I don't think I could be held responsible for my actions if I did. I've taken steps to ensure our paths will never meet again."

"What kind of steps?" Ana asked curiously.

"Let's just say that she's fallen to the very bottom of the social ladder she's been trying so hard to climb for so many years. I can guarantee that no one worth knowing will have anything to do with her from now on."

"Really?" A slow smile spread over Ana's lovely face. "I'm delighted to hear it. As I told the sick child molester, I'd like to toss her into the seventh circle of hell and then walk away smiling, but I suppose being totally socially eviscerated will be a suitable punishment for someone like her."

"Enough talk of that bitch! Let's find something else to talk about instead, hmm?" I suggested. "Now, tell me, have you any clue what on earth is going on between Mia and Kate's brother Ethan?"

And so the subject of Elena-the-bitch-troll-Lincoln was closed for now, as Ana and I spent some theorizing about why on earth Ethan and Mia were pussy footing around each other, before it was time for us both to head back to our respective jobs.

_**I don't own any of the Fifty Shades Trilogy or the characters therein. They belong to E L James. I'm just borrowing them for fun and not for profit. Please refer to the Legal's page for further details.**_

The next update will be to Christian's blog. I'll keep you all posted via my Facebook page about when that is likely to be.

Some of you may be aware that I'm planning to self publish my own original book later this summer, so I'm working hard on that too at the moment. I've had to tweak the title, the latest plan is that it will be called 'Starr Fated'. It is an erotic romance about a young woman called Seraphina, and the two brothers she meets, Jamie and Liam Starr. So watch this space!


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